Totality
by Zandra's Ashes
Summary: Even an eclipse is more complicated in the Pegasus Galaxy when Elizabeth goes offworld and everything goes sideways in the darkness.
1. Chapter 1

"John. Your attitude is only making them more agitated," Elizabeth said quietly as she huddled with his team in a quiet pocket of the otherwise bustling market.

His deepening scowl was his only response. He wasn't going to apologize for being unfriendly, not while all of his instincts were screaming that bringing her here had been a colossal mistake.

Their hosts, a motley looking bunch, had reluctantly stepped away to let them discuss the trade agreement. They looked like the kind of guys who might have gotten kicked out of a biker gang for being too hard core, if such a thing were even possible. They all wore leather chest shields and their bare muscled arms were spattered with poorly rendered tattoos, something not often seen in the Pegasus Galaxy.

He tightened his grip on his P90 as his eyes swept through the expansive space that was a cross between a dungeon, speakeasy, and public market. It was dark, damp, and smelled more than slightly of mildew. There were a few natural skylights, but the only remaining lighting came from the clusters of lanterns scattered throughout.

The market had an area designated for trade with large tables laden with crops and other wares. There was a small food hall area in the back with stalls filled with prepared food and, of course, a bar tucked in the furthest, darkest corner. The people who were working the tables and food stalls seemed less like biker gang rejects and more like the kind of villagers they found on most planets, but even they seemed watchful and wary.

The market was nestled within a deep cavern and completely concealed from the outside with thick foliage, obscuring it to the naked eye. Only trusted people and worlds were given the location and granted access to the market. If any one person from a village betrayed this trust, the entire community would be forever barred from trade relations.

The market had moved after their expedition had arrived in Pegasus and the people who ran it had demanded the new location be concealed from the Athosians until Atlantis's new inhabitants were deemed trustworthy. Based on the scathing looks he'd been receiving since their arrival, John was pretty certain they were still having serious doubts on the matter.

"We're the only people here besides them. Where are all their other customers?" John asked.

"Customers?" Teyla's forehead crinkled.

"Patrons, traders, seekers of goods." John rambled off the list of alternatives. He supposed customers was an odd word choice in a galaxy that had never heard of Walmart. "We saw other people here yesterday."

"Their market typically only stays open until the afternoon meal. They have to tend to their crops and their animals in the remainder of the day," Teyla said. "They kept it open late today so Dr. Weir could visit without the distraction of a crowd."

Elizabeth tugged on his elbow, bringing his eyes circling back to hers. "Can you at least pretend to relax a little? I'm not sure who looks more trigger happy, you or the Scalinos."

 _Relax. Right._ Elizabeth's presence alone upped the odds this would go sideways soon rather than later. His team was better armed, but they were seriously outnumbered. The planet's security force's weapons were rudimentary, but the toothy bruisers looked ruthless.

Seeing she was still waiting for a response, he resorted to diversion. "Scalinos. Is it just me, or does it sound like a mafia name?"

"They're running one of the best rackets in the galaxy," she responded wryly. "The initial report sounded too good to be true, now I suspect it is. We can't establish trade relations with them."

"What!" Rodney paused from shoveling food in his mouth. "Have you seen the food?"

She arched a brow towards him. "Yes. I have. I still can't believe you bartered your nice watch for that."

He snorted through his bite. "It was a fake. I'm hungry, not stupid."

"That's debatable at times." John spoke quietly, directing his words towards Elizabeth's ear.

The corners of her lips quirked as she glanced up at him.

"You don't even know what you're eating, Rodney." John continued. "Did you see the animals they had penned up back at the village? They looked like mutant cows or hippos." They weren't the strangest animal they'd encountered in the Pegasus Galaxy. They had a normal number of eyes and legs, they were just oddly formed and seemed…lumpy for lack of better word.

"They are called baqa," Teyla said. "They are not native to this galaxy. The Wraith began seeding worlds with them early in my father's lifetime. Most of the locals slaughtered them whenever the Wraith dropped them off. They have not bothered in years. The Scalinos are the only people I know who breed them."

"Why would the locals slaughter them? In sacrifice? Or to eat, like, for a feast?" McKay's voice was muffled through his bite.

"My people would have never eaten them, no matter how much their stomachs rumbled." Teyla visibly bristled. "They let them roam freely on Athos, but with their small numbers, they died off before I was born."

"The Wraith were feeding their herd, Rodney. I'm sure you can understand why the locals didn't appreciate the gesture." John's gut was starting to churn and it wasn't just because of the conversation. Tingling sensations of warning were starting to snake down his spine. "Guess that's telling in and of itself that the Scalinos have no issue propagating a food source initially provided through the Wraith."

"I am also concerned for the people in the village," Teyla said. "Their circumstances seem more grave since the last time I traded at one of their markets. I have tried to speak with them, but they say little. They seem afraid."

"They don't seem like they are acting on free will. I'm not sure they have a choice," Elizabeth said.

"You think they are slaves?" McKay asked. "In Pegasus?"

"Throughout history civilizations have taken advantage of the weak," Elizabeth said.

"All this couldn't have come just from here." Ronon frowned as he looked back across the market.

"Like I said. Mafia." John looked towards the door, Lorne was almost late to check in with him. "They probably strong arm other planets to get the rest of their goods."

"Like our medicine? That won't be happening." Elizabeth's eyes narrowed as she studied Declan, the Scalino leader.

"Just like our food, I guess that won't be happening either." Rodney sighed. "Good thing I like MRE's."

"We're hardly starving, Rodney." Elizabeth gave him a pointed look. "The Daedalus just dropped supplies off last week, but they're not just a cargo ship dedicated for supply runs. If they incur damage or are detained by other orders, it would be nice to have some choices besides MRE's on hand."

"Hey." Rodney's head snapped to the side. "Did you feel anything?"

"Like what?" John asked. "Maybe it's the mutant cow you're eating."

"Like the ground shaking." McKay looked around the small group, his eyes stretching wide when no one responded. "Really? You didn't feel anything?" He tossed his plate on a nearby table before settling his hands nervously over his stomach. "Maybe passing on their food isn't a bad idea."

Elizabeth ignored him and flicked her eyes back to John. "They seem like they're used to getting their way," she murmured.

She didn't have to otherwise verbalize her concern. He already knew what she was thinking and what she wanted him to do about the Scalinos. What she didn't want him to do rather.

He held her gaze for a long moment before giving her a short, almost imperceptible nod. McKay notwithstanding, the rest of the small force he had in place would be ready to react the second one of the meaty guards so much as twitched.

Elizabeth didn't want that, though. She wanted to tactfully decline and retreat through negotiation. He had serious doubts these guys would roll with a woman telling them no, but she'd proven him wrong before.

He scrubbed his hand down the back of his neck and did another quick visual inventory of Declan's security layout. There were still clusters of Scalino guards posted throughout the market with the largest group huddled around the only exit to the village.

This would be an ideal time for Elizabeth to prove him wrong again.

"Sheppard!" Lorne called as he trotted in the door.

John exchanged a quick look with Elizabeth before they headed to meet Lorne.

"There is something…weird going on around here," Lorne said.

"We're in another galaxy, one that has life sucking creatures and mutant cows," John said. "You're just now picking up on the weird?"

"More weird than normal," Lorne revised. "The mutant cows rammed their enclosures and escaped. They're stampeding through the village and heading inland."

"Inland? All of them?" Rodney asked. "What else is going on?"

"All the people are shouting, but we can't understand what they're saying," Lorne said. "At first, we thought they were freaking out about the cows, but something else is going on. The men gathered up all the women, I don't know where they took them."

"There are still women all over in here -" Shouting from the outside cut off John's words.

"Shams quanmar!" A group of men burst into the room. "Shams quanmar!"

"Teyla, what are they saying?" John asked as he stepped closer to Elizabeth.

"I do not know. Some of these people often speak in a native tongue that is otherwise unknown in this galaxy."

"It sounds similar to Arabic." Elizabeth's forehead furrowed. "Teyla said baqa earlier, that's almost identical to the Arabic word for cow. Shams is Arabic for sun. I can't quite make out what else they are saying."

All the new arrivals were shouting at once and their words jumbled together unintelligibly.

There was a deafening boom as Declan slammed a battle hammer down on the table beside him, shattering the wood into fragments. "Silence," he bellowed. One of the wooden splinters punctured his arm. He swatted it away like a bug, ignoring the blood trickling down over his tattooed arm. "You," he said extended his hammer to the new arrival closest to him. "Speak."

"Shams quanmar!" The man's eyes darted nervously around the room. "It has already begun. We must prepare."

"Moon," Elizabeth whispered. "Sun, moon; that's what they are shouting."

"That sounds harmless enough," Rodney said. "Why exactly are they freaking out?"

"Anything that spooks the mafia guys can't be good." John took Elizabeth's elbow, propelling her into motion. "I'm calling it. Mission over. We're getting out of here."

Declan intercepted them as they reached the door. "The darkness is descending. You should come with me." He reached towards Elizabeth. "You as well, Teyla."

"I don't think so." John stepped in front of Elizabeth. "They're not going anywhere with you. We're leaving," he said, pulling his P90 higher.

Declan looked to the side. The market had broken into bedlam as the vendors scattered in all directions. "It's for their protection. The darkness, as you can see" he extended his arm, indicating the chaos around them, "it makes it unsafe for the women."

"It's not even mid-afternoon." John's eyes narrowed. "Tell me about this darkness."

Declan looked past John to Elizabeth. "Dr. Weir, let us take you someplace safe."

She took a half step out from behind him. "There is nowhere safer I could be than with my team."

"Declan," John hissed. "I asked you a question. Tell me about this darkness."

"A darkness descends when the sun and moon battle for the sky. Go if you must, Sheppard, but you'll want to keep a close eye on them."

Declan strode off and John wasn't willing to waste any more time. "Move it," he barked, before glancing back quickly at Elizabeth. "You stay close."

She gave him a weak smile. "What do you think I'm going to do? Slip away to do some shopping?"

"Funny." At least she still had a sense of humor, his own had been tapped the moment he heard about stampeding mutant cows.

The mob-like crowd converged towards the back of the cavern, making it easy for their small group to reach the exit. The Scalino guards had left their post and joined the fleeing fray.

His team's pace slowed once they exited the cavern and entered the thick cluster of foliage that hid the market entrance. They wove their way through the thick groves of trees and shrubbery. A cacophony of bird screeches sent a riot of goosebumps racing down his spine.

"Lorne. Tell your team to pull back."

"Sir, they're waiting for us. We might need their help to get her back to the Jumpers."

They heard men yelling as they moved closer to the village.

"What the…," John stepped out from the tree line and the Marines that had accompanied Lorne immediately jumped in front of them, putting a barrier in-between them and the chaos beyond. "What the hell, Lorne. You didn't tell me the city was rioting."

"They're not rioting, they're panicking. They don't even seem to realize we're here." Lorne pointed towards the west. "It'll still be safer to cut through the woods."

"And you didn't mention anything about the chickens, either," John said as he swiped away a cluster of feathers floating towards his face.

Men, boys, and chickens zigzagged erratically, drudging up dust and feathers from the earthen village paths.

"Do I even want to know what they did with all the women?" John asked.

"They hid them from the darkness." Teyla's footsteps had stalled and she stood staring up at the sky, shielding her eyes from the sun.

McKay paused beside her and squinted up before quickly turning his head. "It's an eclipse. Don't look directly at the sun," he scolded. "You'll get permanent eye damage."

"You think we don't already know to not look at the sun?" Ronon said.

"It's hard to resist, it's pretty cool." McKay's eyes glimmered with excitement. "I have some special sunglasses back at the jumper we can use to watch it."

"Teyla, do you know what's going on?" John asked. "Why exactly are they hiding the women?"

"There are cultures who believe demons come down in the darkness, demons who will take their women. I was not aware the Scalinos harbored those beliefs until today," Teyla said. "We need to move quickly. Declan may have allowed us to walk away, but they can be very fervent in their beliefs. The next men we encounter may not listen to reason."

Great. Mutant cows and zealous women snatchers. This planet just kept getting better and better, he thought as he stepped even closer to Elizabeth.

She stood frozen, watching the animals as they streamed into the woods. The way she watched them…it was eerily familiar, like watching a soldier's eyes glaze over when in the midst of a PTSD flashback.

"Ronon. Stay on Elizabeth's other side," John said. "And Teyla, don't get any ideas. You need to stay in the middle of this group, too."

"But-"

"I know you can take care of yourself, but we'll make better time if we can avoid the hassle of dealing with them. You and Elizabeth are in uniform, you're not dressed like the women here. You won't stand out as much if you stick to the middle of our group."

"We need to move." Ronon's gruff voice seemed to break Elizabeth's haze.

She seemed startled by the noise from the village and blinked rapidly, doing a fast double take when she noticed John right at her side.

"We're following the animals?" She asked.

"By coincidence, not intent," John said. "But yes."

She seemed strangely satisfied with that and followed Ronon into movement.

As they skirted the edge of the village, he kept a careful eye on the Scalinos, but they seemed too caught up in blinding panic to focus on their group.

There were no trails once they moved into the woods and they had to carefully pick their way through the foliage and over the rocky forest floor. Their efforts were further hindered as cows, chickens, birds, and small raccoon like creatures flowed in a continual stream away from the village, often moving alongside or interspersing themselves within their group.

Beyond the fact that it was slowing it them down, it was bugging the hell out of him that the animals seemed to harbor none of the wariness for humans most wildlife did. It was also bugging the hell out of him that Elizabeth kept watching them like she was seeing a ghost.

"I feel like we've stumbled into Jurassic Park," Rodney griped as he almost tripped over a raccoon.

At least they hadn't come across anything resembling a skunk, John thought. "Rodney, I thought animals only freaked out during eclipses when it went completely dark in daytime. It's still partially light out, what's going on with them?"

"I'm not a zoologist, how should I know?"

The ground shook and a crack like thunder filled the air. The animals bolted to the east, increasing their pace, and abandoning their human counterparts.

"That can't be good. Hold up." John held up an arm, halting the groups movement. A second later, he realized the noise hadn't been thunder. He spotted movement from above and hastily reversed his footsteps, pulling Elizabeth along with him.

"Out of the way," he yelled as he dragged Elizabeth to the ground, shielding her as best as he could with his body. The ground shook again as the tree smashed down before them, sending a spray of wood shrapnel into the area around them.

"What was that?" Rodney yelped as he swept a branch away from his body and crawled back to his feet.

"Everyone all right?" John asked as he helped Elizabeth up. She was pale, but she wasn't looking at the fallen tree. She stared into the distance watching as the last of the animals disappeared.

"I didn't think they had explosives," Ronon said as he and Teyla climbed to their feet.

"Obviously there are a lot of things going on here that we didn't expect." His eyes panned around the area. Lorne's team was back on their feet and except for a nasty scratch on one of the Marine's face, they were otherwise unharmed. "We need to keep moving. Head to Jumper one first," he called to Lorne.

The second Jumper was a hundred yards to its south. Not only was the clearing not large enough for two Jumpers to land, if they got cut off from one, odds were, they could still make it to the other.

"Cut to the left," Lorne shouted minutes later. "Jumper one is just beyond the trees."

"It's getting dark," Ronon said as they emerged from the woods into the clearing where their Jumper was cloaked.

Elizabeth peered up, shielding her eyes from what little remained of the sun.

He uncloaked the Jumper and turned back to find half their team glancing up at the sun. "Don't look at it," John snapped.

"Unless you want permanent retinal damage, of course," Rodney added as he sprinted quickly across the clearing.

Ronon grinned before following behind him. "He doesn't even run that fast for food."

"There's a lesson there. Never stand between a nerd and his eclipse," John said as they crossed the clearing

"I can hear you and, hello, retina scaring. Eyesight is important." Rodney emerged from the back of the jumper holding four sets of goggles. "I made these myself, they are optimized UV eye protection. I put these on the jumper a long time ago, but we've never needed them before." He passed Elizabeth a set. "I have some of my homemade sunscreen too if anyone is interested."

Elizabeth eased up on John's side. "The village is only a few minutes away; don't you think we should leave?"

"And miss the eclipse?" Rodney gasped.

"We should be fine." John flashed what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "We haven't seen any people since we left the village and the Jumper is right here if any more mutant cows stampede." And as much as he hated to admit it, he wanted to see the eclipse almost as much as Rodney.

"Have you never seen the darkness steal the day?" Teyla asked.

Elizabeth held his eyes for a long moment, before sighing in resignation. Her apprehension only made her look more adorably dorky as she tested the goggles over her eyes before pushing them up and propping them atop her head. "Eclipses don't happen very often where we are from," she said, turning back to the others. "Are they more common here?"

"Just depends on where you are. I saw one every few cycles when I was running," Ronon said.

Rodney pulled on a pair of goggles. "Two more pair. We'll have to share. You know, this is amazing. I've never seen a total solar eclipse before."

John stared at Rodney. "How do you know it's going to be a total eclipse?"

"Well, I don't for sure, but based on the –"

"You know what? Forget I asked." John waved off the pair of goggles Rodney extended towards him and strode inside the Jumper. "Don't we still have the welding glasses back here?" He set his P90 on the bench and pulled open a storage compartment, rummaging around until he came up with them. "Got them."

"No, no, no, no," McKay stuttered. "Welding glasses won't protect your eyes from the sun."

"Maybe not normal ones," John said. "These are NASA issue, what they use on the space station."

"How can you possibly know that?"

"We did some welding that time you were sinking in the Jumper. Remember that, Rodney?" Elizabeth shot him the look that meant 'be nice', so he took a breath and aimed for a less condescending tone. "The scientist told me. I thought they might come in handy and stashed them in here just in case."

"Sounds like you don't need us around for this conversation. Since you're secure, we'll head back to the our Jumper, if that's okay, sir," Lorne said. "It's getting darker and it's going to be harder to see the mutant cows in the woods."

"Yeah, yeah. Get out of here. Check in when you arrive. As soon as this eclipse is over, we'll head out together." He stepped out of the Jumper headed towards Elizabeth. She'd moved several yards deeper into the clearing.

"Copy that," Lorne said.

"Rodney." Elizabeth turned her head back. "Do you make note of sea level anywhere in the recon reports? I don't remember seeing one noted for the village."

"What? No. Why are you asking?" Rodney didn't move his eyes from the sky. He kept a tight grip on the side of his goggles as if he was afraid they would fall away.

"Just curious," she said quietly. "Do you know how far it is the next Stargate?"

Rodney finally turned to her and lifted up his goggles, giving her a quizzical look. "There's a space gate about ten hours away. Why?"

"What is it?" John asked as he pulled the welding goggles on and secured the strap behind his head. He couldn't see a damn thing but the sun with them on, so he pushed them back up on his forehead and frowned as he found Elizabeth staring at him, looking like she was trying hard not to laugh. "Go ahead and laugh, but I can assure you that your eyewear is just as goofy looking."

"Whoa! Look at the sky. It's getting close." Rodney sounded like a kid at Christmas. "Teyla, Ronon, put on the glasses so you can watch. We'll be able to take them off once the moon completely covers the sun."

"You are correct. The darkness is close. The temperature has dropped significantly." Teyla looked amused, but she dutifully pulled on the goggles as did Ronon.

John stepped behind Elizabeth as she pulled down her goggles and peered up at the sun. He pulled the welding glasses down over his own eyes and looked to the sky.

Moments stretched in silence as they watched. What the Athosians called the eclipse was an apt description. It did appear as though the darkness was stealing the day as the moon continued its steady march across the sun. Daylight faded and stars ruptured in the darkening sky.

The chilly air seemed to still and the area around them grew silent save for the sound of their breathing. Time seemed to lose its boundaries. Minutes merged until the moment the moon finally eclipsed the sun.

John pulled off his glasses as the sky morphed into a dark, deep shade of blue. It wasn't pitch black, but without even a sliver of the sun, his eyes struggled to adjust.

Elizabeth stepped backwards in the darkness, colliding into John's chest. Her breath hitched as he grasped her sides and steadied her.

"Careful." He tucked his head down and spoke softly into her ear. "I don't want to lose you in the dark."

Instead of pulling away, she let her head fall back against him as she stared up in the inky darkness of the sky.

"We have totality, people!" Rodney all but cheered. "It's safe to take off the goggles now."

Elizabeth pulled her goggles off and her face lit up as she smiled up towards the sky.

Soft waves of whispery, white light emerged from behind the moon, its ragged edges in constant movement. It seemed like an astral presence, like a sentient energy source looking down on them from above. "It looks like a poltergeist floating behind the moon," John said. "I can see why this would spook the locals."

"It's stunning," Elizabeth whispered as she tilted her head back towards John, the small movement leaving their lips only a breath apart.

"It's filaments of the corona. Careful, this won't last longer than a couple of minutes," Rodney warned. "Be ready to put back on your glasses."

John and Elizabeth ignored him. They both were frozen. It felt like he was locked in the pull of a different force of nature. Her could smell her hair, the scent of her skin, and he could feel the heat of her breath skimming against his lips.

 _Shit_. She was normally the one who could be counted on to keep space between them, to maintain that professional mirage, but her hand reached back, her fingers threading into his hair before grasping lightly and dragging his lips down against hers.

"This is phenomenal," Rodney said. "You know, I couldn't really appreciate the sun when John almost flew the F302 into it, but seeing it's filaments flow out from beneath the moon, it's really beautiful, isn't it?"

"I have never watched like this before. It is quite mesmerizing," Teyla said.

John had almost forgotten they weren't out here alone, but the others had stayed closer to the jumper and several feet of dim lighting stood between them. He reluctantly pulled back, pressing a quick kiss to Elizabeth's forehead before looking back to the others. They were still completely engrossed with the sky.

"Oh, gross," Rodney groaned. "I think I stepped in… Those stupid animals."

He felt a soft shudder roll through Elizabeth's body and he glanced down. "Elizabeth, I need you to tell me what is going on."

She hesitated for a moment before pulling away from his chest and shifting slightly sideways to face him. "I was in Turkey once during a major earthquake. The animals fled just like they did today-"

"Did you say earthquake?" The whites of Rodney's eyes seemed enormous as he turned to face them. "That's what we felt isn't it? A tremor."

"It may have been. It may have been several actually. What you felt in the market, that may have been a faint one as well," Elizabeth said.

"Oh my god, she's right," Rodney gasped. "You know, the odds of a major earthquake after a tremor is...let me think."

Elizabeth flinched and John cursed softly under his breath. She wasn't one who rattled easily and he'd seen a flash of pure terror in her eyes.

"The odds aren't important because we aren't going to be around to find out. Even a tremor could potentially take down the Stargate." Beyond that, whatever Elizabeth had gone through before, it had obviously been bad and he'd be damned if he'd let her experience anything like it again.

"The odds drop to 1 in 100 if there is a tremor," Rodney rambled on. "So, after two tremors….we're looking at a-.

"A very likely chance. We get it, Rodney. We're going." John turned toward Elizabeth who had wandered further away. "What are you doing?"

"My watch." Her eyes seemed unfocused as she swung her head from side to side. "I had it when we first arrived at the clearing. I'm not sure how long it's been gone."

"What watch?" His gut coiled at the stricken expression that crossed her face and he moved back to her side. "Your father's watch? Why did you bring that?"

Her neck snapped back and her eyes widened making him instantly regret his tone, but she'd put him in an impossible situation. It wasn't safe to stay, but she'd never forgive him he asked her to leave it behind.

"It's not safe here, Elizabeth."

"It was safe enough when you wanted to watch the eclipse."

He probably deserved that. "In my defense, that's before we all realized a major earthquake was impending. Hold on, let me help you," he said, pulling out a flashlight. He shouldn't have left his P90 on the Jumper, he could have used that light as well. "But you know we can't wait long."

She gave him a quick, grateful smile. "I don't usually bring his watch. I just didn't have a good feeling about today for some reason."

"You're just now telling me that?" He would have created any number of mechanical delays had he realized they both had a bad feeling about the day. He glanced over to her, but her eyes were intent on the forest floor. "You know what they say, you're supposed to listen to your gut."

"If we listened to your gut, you'd never let me off Atlantis." Elizabeth reached down and rustled through a clump of leaves. "You can't use my own against me, too."

"Yes, I can and for good reason. How many times has it gone well when you've been offworld with us?"

"And how many times does it go well when I'm not?" She stood up and glanced back at him, flashing a small smile.

They continued scanning the ground with the light, working meticulously through the next couple yards. Just when he was about to call it, he caught a glimmer of a metallic sheen.

"Over there." They stepped closer and dropped to their knees. The ground shook and an explosive crackling ripped through the air, followed by the now familiar groan of another giant tree giving way.

"Get down." A hair raising metallic screeching pierced the air as the tree struck the Jumper.

He landed face down, his upper body covering Elizabeth. He pushed off the ground, bracing his upper body on his elbows.

"The tremors are getting stronger," she murmured. "That one lasted a few seconds longer."

Her arm was stretched behind her rubbing the back of her head and her eyes were tight with pain.

"You okay?" He cradled her head in his hands, using his thumbs to brush away some light debris that had settled on her face.

She nodded unconvincingly. "Found the watch," she said, managing a faint smile as she pulled her hand out from behind her head, the watch gripped tightly within her fingers.

"That's good news. Can you stand?"

"It's just a bump, I'll be fine," she said as he climbed to his feet, pulling her up along with him. She wobbled a little as she took the first step.

He frowned and pulled her to a stop. "That's not fine."

"Sheppard." Ronon's gruff voice cut through the darkness.

"We're still standing. Everyone all right back there?" He yelled back at his team.

"We are unharmed," Teyla called. "The tree landed against the jumper, but I can't see any damage from here."

He turned back to survey the clearing. In the murky lighting, it looked like a blast zone with sawdust, foliage, and giant chunks of woods scattered about. If Elizabeth wasn't surefooted, getting her to the Jumper safely was going to be a two-person job.

He steered her to a nearby rock ledge. "You can sit here. Let me check it out first, then Ronon and I will come back and help you back to the Jumper."

"John, did you hear anything else? Just before the tree?"

"Like what?"

She shook her head. "I'm sure it was nothing."

He stared at her for a long moment, hesitant to leave her. "I'll send Teyla back to wait with you."

"There's something else I should tell you. That day in Turkey-"

"Sheppard, you need to see this," Rodney yelled.

"I need to go. Stay here, Elizabeth."

"But-"

"I'll send Teyla, it won't take her long to get to you."

John climbed over some of the smaller chunks of debris and maneuvered around the rest until he reached the others. "Son of a bitch. I thought you said it was fine. That doesn't look fine to me."

"What gave it away?" Rodney huffed. "Maybe the 2,000-pound tree laying on it?"

"It is not laying on it, just beside it," Teyla said. "We just need to climb up the tree to access the rear compartment."

"Good thinking in closing the rear hatch." McKay glanced back at John. "There's no telling what kind of damage the debris could have caused to the controls."

John vaguely remembered thinking about securing the Jumper, but he'd had more pressing worries with Elizabeth at his side. He was surprised he'd managed to actually get the hatch shut.

"Guess we should make sure it's not jammed." He gave a soft sigh of relief when the hatch immediately swung open. There was a two foot clearing at the top, but the rest of the doorway was blocked by the tree. "Teyla, Elizabeth took a hard fall. Can you wait with her until we get this sorted out?"

"Of course," Teyla said, before backing away into the haze.

"You climb any trees growing up, McKay?" John stepped up to inspect the massive fallen tree.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Figured as much." John reached up and found a groove in the wood. He gave a hard shove with his left foot and started propelling his body up. It wasn't a large height to scale, but the diameter of the tree made it an awkward climb.

"How do you know it's 2,000 pounds?" Ronon asked. He strode up to the tree and gave it a shove. It didn't budge.

"Hey, I'm trying to climb this thing," John hissed. "Stop screwing around down there."

"Looks like you made it to me," Ronon said.

He had reached the top and his hands were only a few splinters worse for the wear. "All right, you guys might want to stand back. This tree is going to shift when I move the Jumper."

John laid down on the tree to check inside the Jumper, making sure his path was clear. There were some small wood fragments and foliage on the floor, but nothing large had fallen inside. He lost his grip when he started lowering his legs and instead of climbing down the other side of the enormous tree trunk, he skidded down the bark before landing with a thud in the rear compartment.

"Damn it." At least Elizabeth hadn't been around to see that, he thought as he hauled himself to his feet.

"You okay in there? That sounded like it hurt," McKay chuckled.

"I'm fine," he managed through gritted teeth as he strode towards the cockpit. He gingerly rubbed the side of his face, not surprised when his palm came up a little bloody. The bark had scraped the hell out of his face during the slide.

The Jumper, at least, seemed to have come through the quake unscathed. He took a few minutes to make sure all the systems were working property. Satisfied that everything was in operational order, he finally lifted off before setting it back down a few yards away. He grabbed his P90 as he exited and headed back to the others.

"Rodney, shouldn't it be lighter by now?" John asked.

"This is the larger of their two moon's. Maybe it's just bigger than our moon on Earth."

"Earth's moon is pretty big," John said.

"It could be that it's bigger than their sun or that their sun is just farther away."

"Or the moon is closer to the planet?"

Rodney sighed. "Maybe. All I know is that it will it will take longer for it to completely lighten back up."

"Quiet." Ronon's posture went rigid and he snapped up his gun. "Someone's out there."

"Of course someone's out there," McKay said. "Elizabeth and Teyla are at the edge of the tree line."

"Shut up, McKay," John hissed.

The villagers lacked the skills necessary for stealth, but if they'd come through quickly when he was moving the jumper, the noise of the tree resettling may have masked their movement.

"It's just quiet because none of the women are talking, no offense, Elizabeth." McKay cackled, then paused when she didn't respond. "Elizabeth?"

John spun around, finding only dark shadows around them. "Elizabeth!"

"Teyla," Ronon called. Only the whirling sound of the breeze resonated in response. "Teyla!" He called again, turning around in a slow circle scanning the perimeter.

They were gone.

Each beat of his heart sent a fresh wave of fear and adrenaline coursing through his veins. He pulled out his life signs detector and the screen instantly illuminated with clusters of dots in the woods all around them.

 _Son of a bitch._ He should have checked it when they arrived, but he'd gotten caught up in McKay's excitement over the eclipse.

"Ronon, head east," John said, as he turned on the flashlight on his P90. "I'm going west. McKay-"

"Shouldn't someone stay here and guard the Jumper?" Rodney's voice was shaky.

John bit back his initial response and drew in a deep breath. "Stay here and make contact with Lorne. Let him know what's going on and tell him to double back to assist with the search."

"Sheppard." Teyla's voice carried over the clearing. Her voice was barely audible. "John, can you hear me?"

"Teyla! Where are you?" Ronon yelled.

"Just north of your position, on top of the ridge."

He had to strain to hear her voice. "Stay put, we're heading your way," John yelled. "Is Elizabeth with you?"

There was a long pause. "They took her," Teyla called. "I am sorry, John."

Icy fear ripped through his body, vanishing just as suddenly as it struck leaving him disbelieving and oddly numb.

 _This. was not. happening._

"John, just go," McKay said. "I'll get Lorne to head directly to your position."

John didn't need any encouragement. Instinct and adrenaline had kicked in propelling him forward. He'd started running before Rodney finished his sentence.

"Where did all the animals go?" Ronon asked as they ran through the woods.

"What?" John turned his head towards Ronon before looking back to the murky woods before him. "They were spooked by the eclipse."

"It's getting light again. If they left because of the eclipse, shouldn't they be coming back?"

He was right, but they had bigger things to worry about. "Do you really want to talk about this now, Ronon?"

Running was knocking some of the fog from his mind, but he was still having trouble accepting that he'd let Elizabeth be taken by Neanderthals on this backwater planet. He'd underestimated them and he'd been careless. This was his fault and Elizabeth was paying for his mistake.

 _If anything happened to her-_

"John, Ronon, up here," Teyla called.

As they closed in, they spotted her leaning against a massive tree, putting her radio back on. "I just found this. Elizabeth's, too." She said, holding it out to John.

His heart constricted painfully as he took it from her hand and tucked it away in his pocket. "What happened? Are you all right?"

She rubbed her temple and nodded. "They put a cloth over our faces, it held an odd medicinal smell," she said, wrinkling her nose. "When I breathed it in, I started feeling weak, but I managed to fight them off. They went that way." She pointed north towards the lowest peak of the nearby mountain.

"Was it Declan?" Ronon's voice was flat.

"They were not men I recognized. I do not believe I have seen them before."

As the fog of shock dissipated, blinding rage soared through his veins. _What the hell were they planning to do with her?_ The thought made his teeth clench and his muscles grow rigid. His free hand curled into a fist while the other tightened its grip on his P90 and squeezed until his knuckles turned white.

It took every ounce of self-control John had to throttle his anger and focus. Getting her back came first. Then he could release this shitstorm of fury.

"Sheppard, are you there?" McKay's voice crackled over the radio. "John? What's going on?"

Controlling his anger was easier said than done. He took in a couple deep drags of air and fought to center himself. _Focus._

"Sheppard." Ronon grabbed his tactical vest and jerked hard, forcing his attention back to his team. "They have a head start. We need to move."

John nodded slowly and finally tapped his earbud to respond to McKay. "We're with Teyla, but they took Elizabeth. We're heading towards that mountain to the north." He glanced back down to Teyla. "You okay to run?"

Teyla nodded. "I am feeling better each moment that passes. John, Elizabeth was saying something before she became unconscious. Sue Nam…does that name mean anything to you?" Teyla asked. "I don't believe I have met any expedition members named Sue."

 _Sue?_ He'd no damn idea _._ "Maybe it was whatever they drugged her with."

Static crackled through the radio when McKay spoke. "So whatever is going on this planet, it's worse than we thought."

"It's always worse than we thought," John replied. "What is it now?"

"The odds of a major earthquake. I just ran some tests-"

"I don't remember seeing a seismometer on the Jumper, Rodney."

"No, but I ran a scan and I'm picking up spikes in radon levels."

"And that means earthquake?"

"That alone maybe not, but paired with the tremor activity makes it a pretty resounding yes. Not only that, radon is toxic to humans at these levels. We can't stay on the surface unprotected. You need to get back to the Jumper."

A fresh wave of anger tore through him. "I'm not leaving without her." John more growled than spoke, ignoring the look that passed between Teyla and Ronon.

"Then find her. Fast. I don't know how much time you have," Rodney spoke rapidly. "This planet is in drought conditions, that's why the trees are coming down so easily during a tremor. If a major earthquakes hits with you in the forest-"

"We got it, Rodney. Tell Lorne's team to get back to their Jumper and stand-by."

"This way." Ronon started running.

John followed beside him, pulling up the life signs detector. Ronon was right. Most of the dots had converged together and were heading towards the cliff Teyla had pointed out.

After the first mile, Ronon veered off the left. He bent down and studied the earth, giving a short snarl of frustration.

"What is it?" John wiped his brow as he looked down. "Are those hoof prints?"

"They aren't carrying her anymore, they're riding."

"As in a horse?" John watched Ronon's brows furrow together. "You know, those animals they ride in that movie you like."

"Close enough." Ronon squinted into the distance. It was getting lighter each moment, but it would take some time for them to get full visibility back.

"They will reach the mountain before us," Teyla said. "We must hurry."

They needed to intercept that group before they moved into the mountain. Once Elizabeth was within, they'd have to fight their way inside and that wouldn't end well for either side.

"Why are there so damn many animals on this planet, anyway?" John glanced at Ronon as they ran. "Have either of you been here before? Anyone live here before the Scalinos?"

"I've been to lots of planets," Ronon said. "I don't remember this one."

"I do not recall ever visiting," Teyla said. "There are no signs of previous civilizations here, perhaps it has been uninhabited."

"Maybe there was a reason for that. I feel like we're missing something here." John glanced down at the life sign detector. He frowned and tapped the side of it. "I think this thing's malfunctioning. I still see some of them ahead of us, but it looks like we're right on top of a couple of them."

"Sheppard, what's your status?" Rodney's voice grated against his ear.

"We're about two clicks from the mountain."

"Are you sure that's where they took her?"

"I can see smoke part way up, someone's there," John said. "Plus the mob we're tracking is heading that way."

Ronon suddenly stopped running and John and Teyla had to backtrack to rejoin him.

"I've lost their tracks." Ronon pointed at the screen of life signs detector. "Is that broken? There's no one here."

"Then where the hell are they?" John asked. "Rodney, get in the air. We've got life signs, but we've lost their tracks. See if you can spot them from overhead."

Teyla had drifted off towards a nearby cluster of rocks.

John moved towards her side. "What are you thinking?"

"Perhaps they are beneath us accessing the mountain through the cavern. When we were in the market, I noted the cavern had many paths that stretched back farther into the mountain than we could see. Possibly they are all interconnected."

John strode around the rocky formation. "I don't see an opening."

"It could have been any of them." Teyla nodded back towards another cluster of rocks. "We have passed many such formations along the way."

"Ronon just lost the trail, it couldn't be far." John's lips pressed together as he looked around. He tapped on his earbud. "Rodney, do you see anyplace to land near us?"

"Ah, maybe. Yes, got it. A hundred yards to the east."

"I'm sending Ronon and Teyla to meet you there."

"John, we are not leaving you." Teyla's eyes tightened.

"If there's any chance of stopping them before they go in the main part of that mountain, we have to try. I'll keep heading that way on foot and see if I can connect with them, but if not, I need you there to intercept them."

"Teyla's right, John. It's a bad idea to stay down there alone," Rodney said.

Ronon stepped before John, blocking his path. "Sheppard-"

"Chewie. I have to do this."

Ronon stared him down for a moment before stepping out of his way.

~v~v~v

~TBC. Just one more chapter to wrap this up. First draft of chapter two is already written, so it should post within the week.

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the story and were able to enjoy the eclipse. The moment of totality was truly amazing.

And if you are following Everlong, know I haven't forgotten or abandoned it; I love it too much to do that. :) The next and last chapter will come out this year, probably around Thanksgiving or Christmas.


	2. Chapter 2

John looked back only once to ensure Teyla and Ronon hadn't followed him. He picked up the pace, ignoring the low tree limbs that lashed against his face. He ran for minutes before glancing down at the life sign detector again. The cluster of dots beneath him had made a good pace while he'd been stopped, probably one of the groups on horse, or whatever they were riding.

He turned his eyes back up a second too late. A giant tree root snaked out across the forest floor and his foot tangled beneath it sending him crashing to the ground. Gravel ground into his palms as he tried to break his fall. His left side took the brunt of the impact, leaving his ribs and hip aching.

The ground was rocky here and he took a closer look at the root as he stood. The unforgiving rock had forced the root above ground. Interesting. He backed up and circled around the rock formation.

While the sky had been growing steadily lighter since the eclipse had passed, it was darker here. The rocks butted up to a group of lower lying trees with a tight canopy that blocked the light, almost perfectly concealing an opening. He took a couple of steps inside the tunnel, taking long drags of the cool, stale air. Moisture trickled down the walls and the breeze cut through with an eerie shrill.

His teeth clenched tightly as he thought of those men dragging Elizabeth through these caverns. He mentally took himself by the scruff. He couldn't go there or he'd never stay sane enough to find her.

He tapped his radio. "This is Sheppard. You guys see anyone down here?"

"Negative," Rodney said. "But we did swing by the mountain for a better view. There isn't a feasible landing site nearby, but the good news is that the entrances we see don't appear to be guarded."

"I found an entrance to one of the cavern's tunnels." John flipped the flashlight on and brought his P90 up eye level. "I'm going to check it out, but I might lose radio contact," he said as he moved deeper inside.

"That's a terrible idea," Rodney said. "I know you want to find Elizabeth, but did you happen to forget about the massive, impending earthquake?"

"The odds are around fifteen percent that we _won't_ experience a massive earthquake."

The odds were probably greater that he'd have a heart attack first. Though he'd stopped running, his heart was still racing. Anger, tension, and adrenaline proved a potent mix and it pulsed through his veins, leaving every muscle in his body vibrating in response.

Gravel started to trickle down the wall and John came to a skidding halt as the rock shifted beneath his feet.

 _For Christ's sake_. It wasn't his muscles shaking, it was the earth. As soon as he'd stopped sliding, he reversed his footsteps and ran like hell for the entrance.

"Actually," Rodney said, "the odds are more like-"

"Like it's happening now?" John shouted to be heard over the falling rock. "Because I think it is."

"What!"

He glanced over his shoulder and immediately regretted it. Large boulders tumbled down, filling in the tunnel behind him. Rocks pelleted his body as he cleared the final steps. He threw himself out and landed face down on the ground as it collapsed behind him. He craned his neck back and his heart jumped into his throat at the sight of mangled rock. He swallowed hard and pulled the life signs detector out.

They had to be there, he thought as he wiped off the damp, rocky dust from the screen. A second later, the cluster of dots he'd been tracking gleamed through the grimy screen and he rolled over on his back with relief. He'd no idea if Elizabeth was even in that group, but the same number of dots were there now as had been before and they were moving farther away.

"John, you should take cover," Teyla advised. "We can see trees falling."

He looked up, cursed, and rolled out of the way just in time to dodge a falling limb. He scrambled back and tucked himself against the mouth of the cavern. The ground still shook, but the opening hadn't crumbled leaving a two feet indention in the rock wall. If it held, it might provide enough protection from anything else that fell.

He stuck his head out and watched rocks cascade down from the outside of the cavern. They crashed against each other and onto the forest floor, the fragments splintering in all directions and mingling with the debris from the falling trees.

"John, can you hear us?" Teyla's voice through the radio was faint through the noise of destruction. "Are you all right?"

He rolled his eyes as another chunk of tree landed before him. "Give me a minute and ask again," he yelled as he tucked himself closer against the cavern.

The shaking subsided after a minute, but John didn't budge from his rocky shelter. It would take another moment to let the debris settle and, even then, it would be precarious going. If the forest was a dry as Rodney said, it could have weakened many trees. Just because they hadn't fallen yet, didn't mean they wouldn't.

He glanced down at his watch as he waited, thinking back on Elizabeth's words. He pulled out his canteen and took a sip of water, before tucking it back away. Water, he mused. Earthquakes. Sue Nam.

 _Damn it_. No wonder she'd been scared.

"Sheppard, is it over?" Rodney asked. "We're not seeing trees come down like they were. Lorne is airborne, neither Jumper incurred damage."

"Yeah. It's stopped." He left the tunnel and picked his way over tree limbs and rock to move beyond the canopy of trees that concealed the cavern's opening. He surveyed the route he'd traveled to get there. As far as his eyes could see, the forest floor was a hazardous jumble of shattered trees and rocks. It hadn't just been another tremor and he didn't need a Richter scale reading to know the magnitude of the quake had been significant. "Just out of curiosity, how many miles inland are we?"

"What?" Rodney asked. "About six miles. Why-"

"Sheppard, this is Lorne. You've got a problem, sir. You don't happen to have your surfboard do you? Not that it would do you any good."

"Let me guess, a giant wall of water is heading for me?" John burst into a full out run, heading back towards where he'd left Ronon and Teyla. "There's a clearing just southwest of my position. Meet me there."

"Oh my god. I see it," Rodney gasped. "I don't think you can make it."

"Thanks for the encouragement."

"I'm closer than Lorne," Rodney said. "We're on our way, but John, tsunami waves travel-"

"Faster than me. I know, just do it," he yelled as he jumped over a chunk of fallen tree.

"You need to be there in five minutes."

Hopefully Rodney had been stingy with his time estimate. The clearing was probably a mile away and while he was a competent runner, five minutes in these conditions would be impossible even for an elite speed runner.

He pressed on, pushing himself harder. His lungs burned from the exertion and he couldn't seem to hit a fluid stride; he had to keep darting around tree debris and the rocks that littered the woods.

"Rodney, how does the elevation of the mountain look? Where the smoke is, are they high enough?"

Before he'd hoped Elizabeth was one of the dots in the cavern, now he was praying she was secure in the mountain above.

"The first wave won't reach it, the worst of it is hitting around four miles inland, a couple miles back from your position."

"What do you mean the _first_ wave?"

"There's usually more than one, they call it a wave train. I can already see the second one and its bigger, a lot bigger. It will penetrate further inland. You have about two minutes until the flood water and debris from the first wave reaches you. It should only be a few feet deep, but you won't be able to run through it to reach the clearing in time. The next wave is just seconds behind it."

He came to a dead stop. What Rodney really meant was that he wasn't going to make it period. The first wave wouldn't kill him, but it would seal his fate. "Head back towards the mountain," he panted, looking around and trying to catch his breath. "See if you can get a fix on Elizabeth. I'll figure something else out."

"We're not leaving you." Ronon's voice was firm. "Keep moving."

He understood what he was asking them, but he also understood the implications of risking his entire team. He'd only seen the devastation of a tsunami in news reports, but it was enough to make an impression. If for any reason he or Elizabeth didn't survive this, the others had to make it back to Atlantis.

It was kind of a sick twist of fate that as much as he used to dream about surfing and catching the big one, that today giant waves were turning into his nightmare, maybe the last one he'd ever have.

"John, do not ask us to leave you." Teyla's voice was wrought with anguish. "She would not want you to-"

"What do you suggest I do, Teyla?" He spit out, feeling the heat of frustration rise through his chest. He didn't have a death wish, this was just an impossible situation.

"Haul ass," Rodney yelled. "Elizabeth would want you to move your ass and get back to the Jumper. We'll figure out- wait, what did you say, Ronon? Hold on, John."

"Sure. I can hold." He started to run again. "Got nothing better to do." The forest was younger here, the trees were not as thickly clustered or as tall and he could easily see the Jumper when it flew over. "Rodney, will you just get out of here already?"

"Negative," McKay said. His tone was entirely too casual given the circumstances.

"What do you mean, negative? Whatever you're doing, I'm ordering you to-"

"Sorry, you're breaking up. We can't hear you," McKay said breezily. "Standby for extraction."

"There's nothing wrong with the radio, McKay. You're a horrible liar."

A faint whirl thrummed against his ear and he knew the Jumper had just flown over again. "McKay, where the hell are you?"

"Look up."

He reluctantly turned his head up and saw the Jumper circling back. Their twenty-foot rope ladder was dangling out the back. It was a newer addition to their emergency gear, but this wasn't the usage he'd had in mind when they'd added it.

He cursed softly under his breath. "Not going to happen, McKay."

"We'll pull you up, you don't have to climb the whole thing, but you do have to grab the ladder. You don't have any other options."

As John contemplated it, everything went eerily silent. There were no birds singing, no insects humming. He turned to the east just as the silence was shattered by the roar of rushing water and splintering trees.

Water pooled into the area around him, rushing out ahead of the wave. The ladder descended within reach and was coming up quick from behind as the Jumper made another pass. He hesitated only briefly before splashing through the shallow water and jumping to grasp hold of it.

His boots were wet and his feet skidded off the rung, forcing him to hold all his weight with his arms. He hadn't thought it would be easy, but it was a hell of a lot harder than he'd anticipated. Tree limbs lashed his body, weakening his already tenuous hold on the ladder. His arms were already protesting the effort when he got a foothold and they started hauling him in. The ladder swayed back and forth under his weight; he felt like a fish being reeled out of the water with the way he was flopping around.

He glanced below and saw the ebbing swell of the first wave. As Rodney predicted, the strength of it had hit full height and velocity probably just a few miles inland. The area he'd been standing in was submerged, but it hadn't borne the brunt of the punishing impact.

"You might want to hold on," Rodney called. "The second wave will be here in seconds. It's bigger and more powerful. Last I saw, it looked another wave was forming behind it."

The Jumper ascended as the second wave thundered through the woods beneath. The wind gusted violently, carrying an icy spray from the water that coated his body and dampened the rope. He pulled himself a rung higher and lost his grip just as the Jumper changed course, the momentum forcing his arm forward through the ladder. His heart rate spiked and skittered erratically as he clawed to hang on. He clamped his elbow down against his side, trapping the rung beneath his shoulder. His breath was falling in heavy pants as he adjusted and secured his hold.

He rested for a second, looking behind him, watching as the tsunami pummeled inland and crashed against the Stargate. _Son of a bitch._

John tucked his head down and used his arm to swipe away the water from his face. He looked again and found the gate was still standing. Water slammed against it, striking a wall of blue-white light that could only be a protective shield. The shield split the water, forcing the swell to surge over and around. It broke over the Stargate with a white foamy crest, curving into a massive halfpipe that would have made any surfer drool.

"Did you see that?" John yelled. "Are you picking up any unusual energy surges?"

"Seriously?" Rodney asked. "I'm not doing anything except tying to fly in a straight line. I can try-"

"Don't. Let's stick with flying in a straight line for now." They hadn't picked up anything in earlier scans. It was odd, but they'd have plenty of time later to figure it out and the last thing he needed was Rodney daydreaming about a possible ZPM. John would end up dangling from a tree or tumbling down towards the third wave that was rolling in.

They'd entered an area of the forest with taller trees and even with Ronon and Teyla pulling him in, branches still stretched precariously close. A tree limb caught on a low rung of the ladder, pulling it taut before the limb snapped and sent John spiraling back towards the Jumper. "Hey, careful with the tree's, Rodney."

"I'll see what I can do. Any other requests you'd like to share?"

"Besides reaching a higher altitude? Yeah. Head towards the smoke on the mountain." The water was repelling away from that section of the mountain just as it had the Stargate. From here, he couldn't see the telltale shimmer of light, but he couldn't imagine anything other than a protective shield that could have done that.

"Got it. Lorne's teams coming up on your six. Try to hang on or you'll end up like a bug on their windshield."

"Thanks for the mental picture." He pulled himself a few rungs higher on the ladder, high enough for Ronon to grab the top of his tactical vest and haul him onboard.

John flopped over on his back. "Thanks," he panted. That was all the gratitude he could manage while he fought to catch his breath.

He turned his head from side to side, looking at Teyla and Ronon. They'd each put on a rock climbing harness, more recent additions to their emergency gear, and had latched themselves inside the rear compartment of Jumper. John sat up, keeping a death grip on the rope ladder which had also been secured with steel carabiners. They'd all worked too hard to get him in, it would be a damn shame to accidentally fall right back out, something that would be all too easy to do with Rodney flying.

"Will the mountain elevation be high enough to avoid any other waves?" He asked. Even if there was some kind of protective shield in place, it obviously didn't protect the entire mountain. He could see entire lower sections of the eastern part of the mountain that appeared flooded.

"It should be high enough, that's the good news. The bad news is there's nowhere to land," McKay said. "The terrain is too steep."

"So how am I supposed to get down there?"

"What do you think?" Rodney snapped. "Why do you think I haven't closed the rear hatch?"

"Are you serious? You just pulled me in, now you want me to jump back out?"

"If you have any other ideas, I'm all ears. Otherwise, it's your woman, that means you get to be the one to jump."

John sprang to his feet. The words had been enough to raise his ire, but Rodney's callous tone spit fire through his veins. Teyla blocked his path and shook her head, silently willing him to back down.

"Oh, crap. I'm sorry." Rodney looked a little scared, but also genuinely apologetic. "It's just, this life and death stuff made me forget we're not supposed to know that you're together."

John just glared at him, breathing hard, with nostrils flaring. He probably looked like a damn bull ready to stampede, but the urge died out almost as quickly as it struck. He scrubbed a hand down his face and tried to collect himself.

It wasn't that he'd called him out on his relationship that had boiled his blood, it was the cavalier way Rodney had suggested he retrieve Elizabeth as if she was some item he'd accidentally left behind somewhere. John knew Rodney cared about Elizabeth, it was probably adrenaline making him a little punch drunk, but it hadn't made it any easier to hear.

As for the relationship itself, he could respond in any of number of ways, but at the end of the day, it probably wasn't worth his breath to deny it. He looked at Ronon, finding the man's face had morphed into a full on smirk. He and Rodney were both being asses, but only in the way those closest to you could get away with. Now that rationality was returning, John wanted nothing more than to see them squirm in penance.

"Fine, but if this ever happens during a Jennifer rescue, one of you has to jump." He pointed his finger first towards McKay and then Ronon. "Of course, that means you'll actually have to sort out which one of you gets to date her."

"I believe that would be Dr. Keller's decision, not theirs." Teyla had a disproving look on her face. "John, we have arrived." She nodded out the back hatch trying to refocus their attention.

"And what do you mean the next time we have to rescue Jennifer?" Rodney sounded indignant. "It's not like we have to rescue her every day."

"We have to rescue her a lot. You know it's going to happen again." John opened a storage container, prowling through it until he found some protective gloves. The rope ladder had already made his hands raw as hell.

McKay's face flushed. "Will you just…go. Get out of here already and go find Elizabeth."

"Gladly," he said, wincing as the radio crackled in his ear.

"The Marines are prepared to fast rope down to meet you," Lorne said. "This would be a good time to voice any supply requests."

John coiled up ten feet of the ladder before latching it back to the Jumper with the steel carabiners. He wasn't planning to climb a twenty-foot rope ladder this time, even if it was going down. He gave it a couple of good tugs just to make sure it was secure before tossing the remaining length back out the rear hatch. "Why don't we have any fast roping equipment on board this Jumper?" Now that he thought about it, it was hard to believe this kind of situation hadn't arisen before.

"We're not Marines." Rodney looked like John was crazy for suggesting it.

"It's not just Marines that…never mind." John filed that under a to do list for another day and steeled himself for what awaited below. "Lorne, have them bring a first aid kit and all the ordinance they can carry."

"You got it, sir."

As they closed in, he realized the elevation was higher than he'd anticipated. The temperature had dropped dramatically in the Jumper. Ice and snow capped the highest peaks of the rocky terrain, but there was some accumulation even at this elevation.

"This place kind of reminds me of California," he said as he tugged on his gloves. "You could surf and ski in the same day. A better day than this one, that is."

"It's got the whole earthquake thing going for it, too." Rodney added.

John laid down and eased his feet out the back of the Jumper. He glanced up at Ronon. "Give me a hand and don't let go until I tell you."

It took him a minute to get his feet secured through a lower rung of the ladder. The ladder twisted from side to side as the Jumper moved through the air, making it difficult for him to move lower. If bringing Elizabeth to this planet had been a colossal mistake, then he didn't know what to call what he was doing now. Idiotic was probably as good of a starting point as any.

The Jumper shuddered and John tightened his death grip on Ronon's arm.

"Chewie-"

"I got you."

"Rodney, can you be a little more careful?" He yelled.

"This is as close as I can get. You'll need to jump the rest of the way."

"What?" John squinted down. "The lowest rung of the ladder is at least twelve feet off the ground. I think even you can manage a lower drop point." His gut clenched he looked down the side of the mountain. That wasn't a misstep he could afford.

"Twelve feet? Really?" McKay asked as the Jumper jerked again.

"Damn it, McKay."

"What? I don't fly much and when I do I'm never trying to hold position alongside a rocky mountain."

"Rodney, you must try harder." Teyla's voice was stern. "If he jumps now, he will end up falling off the side of the cliff."

The Jumper shimmied to the side and a small storage box slid out the back, nicking John on the temple before it plummeted down and crashed into to the mountain.

The sound of cracking ice ricocheted through the air, sending waves of loose snow cascading beneath him.

"What the hell was in that box?" John asked. "You better not have caused an avalanche."

"It's not my fault," Rodney yelled. "I can't concentrate with you shouting."

"You are bleeding, John," Teyla said. "Perhaps you should come back in the Jumper and let the Marines go in without you."

John flashed his eyes over to Teyla. "That's not going to happen."

She sighed and moved back towards the cockpit. "Rodney, concentrate. You can do this. Just a little bit closer."

"Maybe if everyone stops yelling at me. Now I know how Carson feels."

"No one is yelling now, Rodney. Take a deep breath," she said soothingly. "Try again. This is important."

John reached under the Jumper and wound his arm around the corded rope securing his hold on the ladder.

"All right, Ronon. You can let go."

"Wait." Ronon stretched out on his stomach facing John. He grabbed John's tactical vest before releasing his other arm.

It was a good call. As soon as the ladder took all of John's weight, it swung erratically. Ronon's hold managed to help him steady the rope and slowly ascend.

His stomach rolled as his eyes scanned the ground below. Heights had never really bothered him before, but then again he'd never dangled out of a moving aircraft at this elevation while staring down the side of a snowy peak.

"Oh my god, what are you doing, Lorne?" McKay's voice was faint, obscured by the gusting winds. "You're hovering right on top of us."

"Settle down, McKay. Try not to hit me, will you?" Lorne said. "The guys are ready to fast rope out so they can help Sheppard down before you knock him off the side of a cliff."

"I'm not going to-"

"Rodney," John gasped. The air was thin and the wind icy cold as it permeated his wet clothing. His breathing had grown labored and it was taking all his strength to hold on. "Let them help."

Before John had finished speaking, he heard the burning sound of protective gloves flying down over the nylon rope. A moment later, the first Marine was on the ground. He pulled the rope over within John's reach and held it tight.

"Sir, you need gloves."

He waved a gloved hand down towards the Marine. "Got it covered," he called as he grasped the rope and released the ladder.

The Jumper shifted, making his transition from ladder to rope jerky, scrubbing any hope of a controlled drop. Instead, he careened down, just barely managing to slow his descent with his boots. He struck the ground hard, sliding on the packed snow and skirting precariously close to the edge.

"Give me your hand," the Marine yelled.

John reached back and grasped hold of his extended arm, exhaling with relief as he was pulled back from the edge.

"Thanks, Thompson."

"Anytime, sir," Thompson said as he pulled him to a standing position. "You'll want to stand back now." He nodded up and John saw another pair of boots descending from Lorne's jumper.

John tapped his earbud. "McKay, you can get clear."

"Oh, thank god."

"What he means to say," Teyla said, "is good luck."

"Thanks." John glanced down at his watch. "If you don't hear from us in an hour-"

"We know what to do," Ronon said.

As the other two Marine's fast roped down, John stowed his gloves and unhooked his P90 from his vest. He flicked on the light and eased over to the large opening in the mountain's edge. As McKay reported earlier, it wasn't guarded, but he'd little hope that their arrival had gone unnoticed.

"Any idea what to expect in here, sir?" Thompson asked.

John turned back and found the remaining Marines had joined them. "No, but they have Dr. Weir, so stay sharp and only fire on my order, understand?"

"Yes, sir."

The interior of the mountain was cold, dark, and quiet. He tried the scanner again, not surprised when his team were the only life signs that appeared. Huge mountain, thick rocky walls. This was going to be fun.

Their compasses spun erratically, probably impacted by whatever field protected the mountain. It left them wandering aimlessly through cavernous rooms and damp hallways that all looked like the same. Minutes stretched into an hour before he started scratching marks on the wall so they'd know if they were wandering in circles or covering new ground.

"Sheppard, do you read?" McKay's voice could hardly be heard over the thick static of the radio. Radio transmissions had been weaving in and out depending on where they were in the mountain. "What's your status?"

Cold, hungry, irritable as hell, he thought. It would be forgotten in a heartbeat if he could just find Elizabeth. "Still searching. This place is like a maze. Do you still see smoke from above?"

"Affirmitive. Try concentrating in the northwest section."

John rolled his eyes. He was doing good to determine up from down at this point, much less figure out what way was north. "Okay, we'll touch base in another hour. Sheppard out."

He heard the faint trickle of water and redirected his footsteps. If anyone was living inside this giant rock, odds were, they would stick close to a water source. They trekked deeper within the mountain for what felt like miles, the sound of rushing water growing stronger each step until they reached an underground river.

"Is it just me, or is it getting warmer?" Thirty minutes ago, he was wondering if he'd get hypothermia with his wet clothes. Now they were drying and his breath was no longer clouding in the air.

"It's warmer. Is it thermal heat, like from a volcano?" Thompson asked.

"Doubt it," John said. "Rodney checks pretty carefully for that after our experience on Toranis."

The heat was another thing to add to his running tally of weirdness on this planet. Maybe there were fires burning nearby, he thought. That meant people. He pulled out the scanner and the screen flashed to life with clusters of life signs. _It was about damn time._

"This way."

John led them along the river and then up a natural granite staircase. It opened into a wide, bright room filled with earthen pots overflowing with crops. He looked up, finding a wide crevice in the top that let the sunlight flood inside, but oddly no falling snow or cool breezes seemed to penetrate the space. It was even warmer than the mountain rooms around it, evoking the odd sensation of having stepped inside a greenhouse.

They moved through the rows of crops, following the faint murmur of voices. John pulled his P90 up eye level and slowed his steps as the voices grew louder. It didn't sound like the noises from a military barrack or what he'd expect to hear emanating from a group of hardened criminals. He heard faint laughter and the hum of easy conversation. Feathery plumes of smoke started drifting towards them carrying along a savory aroma.

"Smells like dinner," Anderson said.

"Quiet," John hissed.

They reached an entrance to what appeared to be another large room. He took another step and froze as a young boy skidded to a halt before him. The boy's eyes went wide with terror.

"Father! Masakh!" He screeched in a pitch high enough to shatter glass.

"That's one way to make an entrance," Thompson said as he eased on up on John's side.

They only made it a few steps inside before their footsteps stalled.

"What is this place?" Thompson asked, frowning in confusion as he looked around.

John's eyes scanned the room, hardly believing what he was seeing. Water, people…something had carved out a huge open space within the mountain about three football fields long in length. Snug wooden structures hugged the walls, each probably just large enough to accommodate a small family. The center of the enormous space held a smaller version of their public market and the remaining space seemed to be a designated public area with people milling about and children at play. There were a few natural skylights in the rocks above them, but most of the lighting came from lanterns and clusters of burning stakes reminiscent of tiki torches.

These people lived within the mountain; the sparse village they'd seen earlier was a sham. Like the Genii, he thought, feeling another ominous rumbling of discontent.

"It's a village," John said. "Homes, families."

"And dinner," Anderson said, sounding hopeful.

"You're starting to sound a lot like McKay." John started slowly walking.

People eyed them warily, but no one made a move towards them. None of the residents wore coats, all were dressed as if it were a comfortable fall day. There were a few cooking fires in the market area and he spotted smoke coming from a couple areas around the village, but that wasn't what was heating the room and it was almost as warm as the greenhouse. The natural skylights alone should have caused cold air to flood the room, but it was cozier than the tightly insulated home he'd grown up in. He glanced at his scanner again. No unusual energy readings. It did't make any sense.

"Sir, this isn't quite what I expected." Thompson said.

It's not what John expected either. All signs indicated she'd been brought to this location, but the domestic harmony they'd intruded upon was at odds with Elizabeth being forcibly taken. If they'd wasted two hours in this mountain and she wasn't here…No. He swallowed deeply as the image of the tsunami waves flashed through his mind. The alternative wasn't an option.

"Just…. try not to aim your weapons at any kids until we figure out what's going on. And don't let down your guard. I thought the Genii were harmless before and look where that got us."

"But didn't they take you hostage as soon as you discovered their evil lair?"

"Lair?" John glanced back at Anderson. "It was a bunker. I think you've read one too many comic books."

But Anderson made a good point. And while John appreciated the fact that no one was trying to kill him, not yet anyway, it was another piece of the puzzle that didn't fit.

A woman walked out of a nearby residence and almost backed into him.

"Hello." John forced what he hoped was a charming smile on his face. "We're looking for a woman. About this tall with brown hair and green-"

The woman paled and bolted back into her home, slamming the door behind her.

John shook his head and looked over to Thompson.

Thompson shrugged. "It was worth a try. Now what? I'd hate to search these one by one, this place is huge."

And they'd yet to encounter Declan or any of his merry band of bandits. He wasn't sure if that was a good sign or bad sign, it was just… odd. It was impossible to strategize when you couldn't anticipate their next move and the Scalinos had proved about as predictable as the geologic conditions on this planet. They were deviating from the bad guy play book and he didn't like it, didn't like any of this.

Out of the corner of his eye, John saw caught a glimpse of the young boy who'd screamed. The boy ran into one of the largest buildings in the cavern. A small crevice in the mountain ceiling let in a little light and the home had a small yard like area at its side with some weedy looking grass and a few scraggly flowers.

Someone important lived there. That made it a good place to start.

"That way." John pointed.

He glanced back from time to time as they moved through the village. Families emerged from their dwellings, staring warily after the armed strangers moving through. He spotted a few more rock staircases as they walked and, based on the number of people in the public area, he figured there must be more homes in the surrounding rooms of the mountain.

Most of the city was outside monitoring their progress by the time they closed in on the largest house. The door suddenly swung open and the young boy reappeared. A familiar voice from within spurred his footsteps faster.

"I don't understand, Harlen. Can you speak slower?"

 _Elizabeth._ John started running.

"Masakah!" The boy cried. "I must warn father."

Elizabeth stepped out of the door and caught the boys hand. "Harlen, wait. Your mother is asking you to stay. I think- John?"

He reached for her without thought. His brain caught up when she was a step away and instead of grabbing her, his hand curled into a fist and he let it fall back to his side. _Shit._ Every cell in his body was learning forward, urging him towards her.

Her eyes had focused behind him, stretching wide as she spotted the Marine's and their raised P90s. She swiftly pulled the boy behind her and walked them backwards several steps. "John, don't."

A flush of heat rushed up his neck as relief was immediately stunted by frustration.

"Elizabeth, we're not going to hurt him, but you need to step away."

"Wait, you don't understand." Elizabeth glanced to the side and flinched.

"Father, Masakah!" The boy pointed at John. "Monster!"

John tracked the boy's eyes. Declan. The kid's father was Declan. Perfect.

Declan's eyes glowered as he closed in, dramatically wrapping each finger around his hammer, demonstrating his grip. "What did you do to my boy?" He growled.

"Me? What did _you_ to do my-" _For god's sake._ What the hell was he supposed to say here? "What did you do to Elizabeth?"

John's eyes slanted sideways to Thompson who gave him another one of those commiserating shrugs of his. _Damn it._

"This wasn't his fault." Elizabeth breezed to the side, stretching out her arm as if to protect Declan, a giant, tattooed beast of a man.

John slowly lowered his P90. "Will someone tell me what the hell is going on here? I thought you'd been kidnapped."

"Well… I was." Elizabeth did a double take when she saw John snap back up his P90. "Wait!" She glanced back at Declan and when satisfied the large man had settled down she moved closer to John. "It wasn't Declan, he's been trying to figure out how to get me back to you. And the men who did it, they really meant no harm."

"Meant no harm? They drugged you and carted you off against your will. Why is it that everyone else seems to think this is all perfectly logical? This is insane."

"You got that much right. It's insane, _they're_ insane when it comes to the darkness." Declan gave a heavy sigh and stepped forward. "Listen." He dropped his voice to a hush. "Most of these people are refugees. Survivors. The Wraith destroyed their home worlds. Over the years, we've patched together our own community. There are many different traditions and beliefs among them and, as you might imagine, it's caused some problems at times. But out of everything that they don't have in common, the one thing most all want to agree on is this darkness. The demon coming to take their women. It makes them crazy."

"And you don't believe in it."

"In ghosts?" Declan grunted. "Not as a matter of habit."

"Then why don't you-"

"Stop it?" He pointed around the room. "I got about twenty men here from my old homeworld that I trust with my life. Reasonable, rational-"

"Ruthless?"

Declan's gaze held steady. "When they need to be. Yeah." He pointed around to all the biker gang rejects John had marked earlier as they emerged from dark corners of the village. "Twenty of us against an ignorant mob is only going to make things worse. Instead of fighting it, I try to keep it safe, orderly. This is the first time in many cycles we've had the bad luck of having visitors during the darkness."

A small pack of young children ran out of a nearby house. Their laughter quickly morphed to fear when they saw John and his men and they high tailed it back inside.

His forehead furrowed. "You have a lot of kids around here."

The corner of Declan's lips quirked. "Need some pointers? I heard you've no young among your kind."

John glanced to the side, smiling in spite of himself. He'd walked right into that one. "By choice, not because…" He caught the bemused look on Elizabeth's face and realized there was no tactful way out of that one. "I meant, we don't often run into other villages with this many children. Other villages this large, either."

"Look around. They live here, inside the mountain where it's safe." Declan held out his large, ridiculously muscled arms, his battle hammer making his arm span seem it exceeded ten feet. The man excelled at taking up space. "We haven't experienced a culling since we moved here. With any luck, the Wraith don't know we're here. No one ever stayed on this planet long because of the earthquakes and the giant walls of water they cause."

Elizabeth's smile faded at that. "Tsunami?"

John gave her a short nod. "Thanks for warning us about that, by the way."

Declan seemed unfazed. "The earth had yet to quake when you departed. There was nothing to warn you about then but the darkness."

Elizabeth had visibly paled. "Is it safe here?"

"We would have known by now if not," John said. "We should be in the clear."

"The quakes are worse in the south," Declan said. "It defies logic as I know it, but we've yet to have one that's done any damage here."

John eyed him carefully, wondering if he had any idea about the shield that was most likely responsible for that protection. "Those tunnels of yours-"

"Not a good place to be are they? Here, we just have to worry about flooding in the lower levels, like the market. But the tunnels that stretch out beneath the forest, that rock is not as strong. We've lost a few of those over the years."

"Lost one today," John said, ignoring the slight double take Elizabeth did at his words.

Before she could question him, a little girl emerged from the shadows and tucked in behind Declan to hide. "Father? He is not a monster?" She asked.

Declan gave John a long penetrating look, before looking down behind him and smiling at his daughter. "He's no monster, girl."

"Monster?" John mouthed towards Elizabeth.

"Normally he's more handsome, Deana." She stepped closer and reached for John as the little girl giggled and took off. "What did you do to yourself," she murmured as her fingers tentatively reached out to inspect the damage he'd inflicted on his face that day.

He followed her eyes as they tracked down his body. His body had taken a beating, but she couldn't see that bruising. What she could see was bad enough. The water from the tsunami had mixed with the dirt and rocky dust he'd already been covered in. It had left his uniform a damp, muddy mess. His palms bore splinters, rope burns, and tears from the gravel that had ground into his skin. His face was scratched to hell, but at least he wasn't bleeding anymore. He'd looked worse. He was pretty sure, anyway.

"I was trying to survive the earthquake and tsunami so I could rescue you," he reminded, watching as her expression sobered. "Now I find out you've been up here making friends the whole time."

"Children, run in and see your mother. I need to talk with our guests for a minute," Declan said. He waited until they were out of earshot before continuing. "I should tell you that these people have reason to believe in the demon. In the past ten cycles, almost each time the sun and moon have battled for the sky-"

"We just call it an eclipse," John interrupted.

"Call it what you want, but we've lost a woman almost each time."

John's eyes narrowed. "Have you lost anyone besides the women?"

"Not all had young, but the ones who did, the children went missing the same time as the women. Twice we've found the women's partners dead, we think the men were killed trying to protect the women." Declan sighed. "You needn't worry, though. Everyone who we've lost has broken apart from the main population. They'd left the village or had been caught out in the woods before darkness fell. You'll be safe here."

John stared at him. "Sounds like you have a serial murderer or abductor on your hands."

"Serial what?" Declan frowned. "All I know is that it's the work of evil. What the Wraith have done to many worlds, it's damaged some people's minds and souls. Many are never the same after a culling. I have accepted the fact that it is someone living among us, but after all these years, we've not been able to track him."

"Is that why some of the men are using drugs to bring in women during an eclipse?" Elizabeth asked. "Do you really support that?"

"We welcome refugees into our village, not many people do. The men's protective ways have been known to terrify some of the newcomers from time to time, they don't understand the men are trying to help them. People were getting hurt and it wasn't safe for the women to stay out on their own."

"So it's the lesser of two evils?" John asked.

Declan's face clouded over. "As a leader, I make impossible choices every day. Even if it's for the greater good, it's not always easy to live with. I'm sure that's something you understand."

Elizabeth avoided John's eyes, but he didn't need to see within them to know what she was feeling. She would always carry the scars from the impossible decisions she'd had to make over the years. They both would.

"It wasn't just the women getting hurt either, some of the men have gotten pretty battered over the years trying to, as they say, save the women," Declan added. "You should see the men who were trying to save your Dr. Weir. One has a busted eye and the other swears he'll never bear another child. She defended herself well."

Her mouth curved into a small smile at his words. "The men who grabbed Teyla fared worse than that," she said, "but I was glad to leave them with those souvenirs of our time together."

John couldn't help but smile in return as he watched her. She was proud of herself and she should have been. He'd felt a surge of pride himself when Declan mentioned the damage she'd inflicted on those scumbags. And while the idea of her having to defend herself still made his gut roll, he was glad to hear her instinct and training had kicked in and that she had fought back.

Elizabeth's look turned thoughtful. "Declan, has anyone gone missing today?"

"No one has been reported missing yet, but we still have-"

"Elizabeth," the little girl had reappeared at their side. "Mother is asking for you."

One of Declan's men appeared nearby and motioned for him. "I take it you two will be okay without me?" Declan asked. "I need to make rounds and check with my men."

"We'll be fine," Elizabeth said. "John, you should meet her."

"Give me a minute." John pulled her to a stop. "Thompson. Have one of your men backtrack until he can get a good radio signal. We're due to check in."

"Yes, sir."

"And keep an eye on Anderson. We're going to have a fight on our hand if he filches someone's dinner." His eyes swung back towards Elizabeth. "Okay. I'm all yours."

She raised a brow towards him and damned if he didn't almost blush. "It might be better if I don't talk for a while, I seemed to have caught Rodney's foot in mouth disease."

A smile stretched across her face and she stepped closer and tugged on his shirt. "I think it's kind of cute."

"Do you have any idea what I…" He turned his head to the side and took a breath before turning back to meet her eyes. "I just pulled some Indiana Jones meets Mission Impossible feats to rescue you and I get cute?" John gave her a mock scowl. "Being a superhero is overrated."

"Superhero?" She laughed and tugged him back into motion.

"How did you get up here anyway?" He asked as he followed behind. "I jumped out of a spaceship to get here. Just in case you were wondering."

"That's not funny, John." She paused outside the door to Declan's home. "They have these horse like things-"

"We figured that part out."

"I was unconscious for most of that, but….Hey." She squeezed his hand when he gave a responded grunt of anger. "Easy. Remember they meant well."

"Whatever."

She sighed softly. "Anyway, after that, we took the elevator."

His brows drew together. "Did you say elevator?"

"Think Da Vinci, not modern engineering."

"That would have been better than jumping out the back of a-"

"Still not funny, John."

He realized Thompson had returned and was standing nearby. "Will you tell her?"

Thompson just shrugged and coughed back a laugh. Elizabeth ignored them both and entered the home. John was still shaking his head as he followed her in and looked around.

As with the rest of their village, they relied on lanterns to illuminate the space. The first room took up half of the home. It was an open space with a seating area on one side, a table and makeshift kitchen on the other. Elizabeth led him towards the back of the home and into a bedroom furnished with only a large bed along with a side table that held a blazing lantern.

A woman laid in the bed, her long dark hair in a braid trailing past her shoulder. She was pale, but flushed. Her eyes flicked open and she shoved to a sitting position when she spotted John.

"It is okay, mother." Deana jumped onto the bed with her mother and snuggled up against her side. "Father said he is not a monster."

"Well if father says it, it must be so." The corners of Jana's lips quirked. "I heard voices outside and wondered if your people had arrived. Elizabeth, is this…" Jana's voice was lost to a coughing fit. When the coughing subsided, she took a breath and tried again. "Is this the one you spoke of?"

Elizabeth look back at John before he had the time to wipe the smirk from his face. "One of them," she said, giving John a quick wink before turning back around.

"One of them?" John frowned.

"This is Colonel Sheppard," Elizabeth said. "John, this is Jana, Declan's partner."

John didn't see the fear in Jana's eyes he'd seen in the other villagers. She was obviously ill, but the woman radiated a quiet strength and intensity.

"Thank you both for what you are doing." Jana's voice was steadier this time.

"Don't thank us yet," Elizabeth said. "Let's just see about getting you some medicine first. We'll let you rest now, but I won't leave without saying goodbye." She reached down and gave Jana's hand a soft squeeze before leading John back out.

"I think she may have bronchitis," Elizabeth said as they exited the home. "I hope that's all it is anyway. We'll need to get Keller out here."

John didn't respond. It seemed like a hundred pair of eyes had centered on them the moment they exited Declan's home.

"Thompson, stay put," John called as he turned into the side yard. "We'll be right back."

He grabbed Elizabeth's hand once they reached the shadows. She started to pull away, but he tightened his grip and turned his head back to face her. "No one can see us now," he said as he pulled her within the space between Declan's house and the mountain wall. It wasn't completely dark, the area caught just a soft glimmer of the light from the crevice above.

"What are you doing?" She asked as he walked her backwards until her back brushed against the rock.

"I just wanted to talk to you without the whole village staring at us." He gently took her head in his hands, combing his fingers through her hair. "How's your head doing? You have a bump here." He pulled back and looked at her eyes. "You could have a concussion."

"I'm fine. Better now that I know you're okay. And you're one to talk. I wasn't kidding earlier; your face is a mess."

"Stop trying to distract me. I know what you're doing."

"You'll know if I'm trying to distract you. Right now, I just want to…I just want you closer." She grabbed the sides of his tactical vest and tugged. "I was worried about you," she said softly.

His arms circled her waist and he pulled her flush against him. "And you scared the hell out of me."

She stretched up until their lips crashed together. All his fear and anger unknotted, that energy feeding into an urgent, ragged kiss that stretched on much longer than it probably should have with his men awaiting their return.

Their foreheads pressed together when their lips finally broke apart and he stared down at her. She'd only been gone a few hours, but it had seemed to stretch an eternity. He didn't want to let her go again.

"We should get back to the others," Elizabeth murmured.

A soft growl rumbled past his lips. "I don't want you around any of the others. There's a killer out there Elizabeth, someone targeting women."

"Then we'll go back to Atlantis. Where is your team anyway?"

"On the Jumper. There's flooding beneath us, we can't access the lower levels to get back to them."

Her mouth opened softly. "We're stuck here?"

"Overnight probably. Hopefully the water will have receded in the morning." Stuck with a predator. It wasn't ideal, but he really wasn't that worried. They were armed with P90s and Berettas while the Scalinos were armed with bows, spears, and clubs. Whoever the killer was wouldn't stand a chance.

"We'll need to touch base with your team." Elizabeth rubbed her temple. "I could use some Tylenol and Jana needs medicine. Can they drop in the supplies to us?"

"They can manage." He reluctantly edged back. "Before we go, how about you tell me what else is going on here. Why do the kids keep calling us monsters?"

"The Genii."

"What the hell do the Genii have to do with this?"

"From what I gather, it happened under Cowen-"

"What did he do?" John said, feeling a fresh spike of anger.

"Before the Genii got involved, the Scalinos had already learned of our role in awakening the Wraith and immediately distrusted us. They feared the Athosians would reveal their location to us so they moved their market and homes, cutting ties with them. The Genii just cemented their fear. They said we were brutal, that we brought death and destruction to all we met."

"Then why reach out to us now?" Before he even finished the question, he realized he already knew the answer. "Because of Jana."

"Yes."

"So Declan invited monsters into his home to help his wife?" Damn. He was usually a better judge of character than that, but the man kept surprising him.

"Are you glad we didn't try to blast our way out of the market now?"

"I still wouldn't mind blasting the men who drugged you and carted you off. Is that an option?"

"I think not, but it's the thought that counts." Elizabeth said, flashing him a grin that made him momentarily forget about serial killers and his battered body.

"Seems like I've heard that before." He leaned in closer and kissed her again.

~v~v~v

Hours later, John returned to Declan's home and relieved Thompson of guard duty just as Elizabeth stepped outside.

"There you are," she said. "Last I saw, you disappeared after dinner with Declan. That was over an hour ago. I was starting to worry."

"He gave me the grand tour. This place is seriously cool," John said. "Did you know they got their horses and all the cattle they rounded up through a pass-through in the mountain? They're safe back on the other side, it's just a little more wet than what they're used too with the water that made it through."

"Sounds like you're having fun."

"Like I said, this place is cool. We need a mountain like this for our alpha site. How's Jana, anyway?"

"Resting comfortably. She's just had her first dose of antibiotics, but the fever reducer and cough suppressant alone have worked wonders. We'll see how she is in the morning. Keller should be able to get in by then if she's not doing better."

Lorne had air dropped in medicine from Atlantis a few hours earlier. The lower sections of the mountain remained flooded, but if the water kept receding at its current level, they'd be able to get out in the morning.

She moved towards his side. "You cleaned up nice."

"While you were enjoying a hot bath your doting new friends drew for you, I made use of the cold public showers. They're communal unisex, just in case you were wondering. It made for some interesting conversation."

"You're joking," she laughed.

"Not so much. Thanks for having someone grab some clothes from my quarters. The shower would have been pointless without them." Lorne had dropped in some personal items for their overnight stay along with the medical supplied they'd requested.

She gave him an odd look. "You can thank Teyla. I didn't ask her."

"I don't understand."

Elizabeth averted her eyes. "I asked her to get some things from my quarters. I was tired and my head hurt. I wasn't thinking." She glanced back and there was something in her eyes he couldn't quite read. "Your things are all over my room, John. She packed clothes for you when she got mine."

"My stuff isn't all over. I have one drawer."

"And a Sudoku book on the side table, ammo cans, gun cleaning supplies. That's all before you even hit the bathroom."

"I get it. I'll get my crap out of your quarters."

"Hey," she said softly. "I like your things in my room. I like _you_ in my room. That's not what this is. I just…. didn't expect to get outed this soon." Her eyes narrowed when he didn't respond right away. "She already knew, didn't she?"

"They already knew." John let out a heavy breath. "My team. I didn't say anything, they figured it out. Is that a problem?"

"At first, I thought maybe it would be."

"And now?"

It took her a moment to respond. "You're the one who froze the first time I ever hugged you in public."

"So…what? You thought I'd bolt?"

She gave a tiny shrug. "I think we both have baggage that makes us a little wary." She shifted sideways and tilted her head until their eyes locked. "But this is different, isn't it?"

The look in her eyes kindled warmth within him. Everything with Elizabeth was different, including the way she didn't force him to verbalize it. She didn't have to. She seemed to absorb everything she needed when she looked into his eyes.

"Do you still have those goggles Rodney gave you?"

"Yes," she answered slowly, her gaze turning questioning at his change of subject. "Why?"

"Let's grab them. There's something I want to show you."

Fifteen minutes later, they reached the top of a granite staircase. It led outside to a natural rotunda with clusters of rock around the edge, a natural safety wall to protect those who ventured out for the view. It was only seven at night and the sun had not yet set.

The bench they settled onto was icy cold as was the mountain wind. He pulled the blanket's they'd borrowed over them, drawing Elizabeth close to his side.

She laughed when he pulled out the welding glasses. "What's going on?"

"Remember Rodney mentioning this planet had two moons?"

"It's a another eclipse?" Her eyes stretched and a delighted grin claimed her face. "How is that even possible? I thought that-"

"Don't go all McKay on me and ruin the fun. Just enjoy it. It's pretty cool, right?" He said, as they both pulled on their eyewear and turned their heads to the sky. "It won't be long to totality."

"It's more than cool, can you imagine how rare this must be in the galaxy? In most galaxies? Rodney is going to have a fit when he finds out he missed it."

John almost snorted at that. "He'll be more upset he didn't consider the possibility himself."

Conversation ebbed as they became engrossed in scene unfolding before them. This was the smaller of the planet's two moons, but as it covered the sun, the sky dimmed much as it had earlier that day. It was closer to nightfall and the sun had descended enough for the bottom section to start slipping behind the treetops.

He pushed his welding mask atop his head. Their breath cascaded into the night as puffy white trails, not unlike the filaments he spotted floating out from behind the moon as it finally covered the sun.

He eased Elizabeth's goggles off and she shifted closer, resting her head against his shoulder as she gazed up. "It still can't believe how amazing this is to see it with your own eyes. Pictures could never do justice to this kind of experience."

This time, the corona's light carried more of a watery green shade within the soft white reminding him somewhat of the Northern Lights as the colors rippled and mixed with the deep blue of the evening sky. The light ribboned out from behind the moon, appearing like opaque arms reaching down and embracing the forest below.

"How did you find out about this," she breathed

"Declan. A lot of the village is outside on other ledges now viewing it though these little boxes that are kind of like the pinhole viewers we made in elementary school."

They watched silently as the moon crossed over and the sun started growing larger again. Elizabeth didn't put back on her googles. Instead, her eyes settled on John with that same glazed look she had when watching the animals flee earlier that day.

"You ready to tell me about Turkey?" He took her hand when her body went rigid. "You don't have to. You don't make me talk about things when I don't want to, so it's fine if you don't-"

She rubbed her temple, her eyes losing a bit of that faraway look. "It's just, the look in most people's eyes when I tell them…" Her voice trailed off as she tilted her head away. "It's as if they'd like nothing more than to go back to a time where they didn't have that mental picture of my experience."

"I'm not most people." He brushed back of lock of her hair. "Where were you when it hit?"

"Our helicopter had just lifted off." Her eyes flashed back towards him. "As the helicopter ascended and we realized what was happening, all I could think, is why me? Why did I get to live while so many below me were dying?"

"There was nothing you could have done, Elizabeth."

"We heard the reports through our headsets before we saw the wave." She continued without acknowledging his words. "I found out later that the earthquake was responsible for most of the casualties, but watching the tsunami was…." Her voice faltered. "Death from the earthquake came almost instantly, but I had nightmares for months about watching people try to outrun the tsunami."

Jesus. He knew what it felt like to watch from the air knowing you were unable to assist. It was haunting, something that you could never forget. "Why did you wait so long to say something today? If I had gone through something like that, I'd be shouting earthquake if I thought I felt a tremor."

Her head nodded off to the side. "After Turkey, I thought it was an earthquake every time I felt so much as vibration from a box dropping on the floor. Sometimes it just took my own heart beating too fast to make me wonder if the ground was trembling. Even now, if I yelled earthquake every time it popped into my mind, everyone would think I was crazy."

"Thought we might find you out here." Declan's deep voice boomed through the air. "Hope you don't mind a company. My little beasts were getting restless and Jana's sister is sitting with her now."

John discreetly squeezed Elizabeth's hand, but she seemed almost relieved by the interruption.

A thick fur coat concealed Declan's tattooed arms. His kids were similarly bundled, John could barely make out their flushed cheeks behind their fur trimmed hats.

"I see you left your battle hammer at home this time," John said. He'd left his P90 back with the Marine's, but he still had his side arm in his thigh holster.

"That thing's heavy as hell. I don't normally keep it on me once we return to our homes, but after I saw her," Declan nodded towards Elizabeth, "I knew you wouldn't take it well. I figured you'd turn up sooner rather than later ready to tear the place apart."

"Obviously I wouldn't take it well. Some of your people kidnapped our leader." He all but growled when he spotted Declan's face. "What?"

"Leader?" The man's eyes were crinkled with laughter. "Call her what you want, but I saw you two making eyes at each other back at the market today. I know what I would do if someone had taken my Jana."

John was saved by responding as Harlen stepped closer staring wide eyed at John. "What's on your head?"

The boy reminded him a bit of Jinto in his eagerness. He was a few years younger than Jinto had been when they first met.

John pulled his welding glasses down and extended them out. "Check them out. These make it safe to look at the sun."

Harlen grabbed the glasses and scrambled onto John's lap. "Show me," he said excitedly.

"Deana, would you like to try mine?" Elizabeth patted the bench beside her. Deana worked her way in between John and Elizabeth, quickly pulling the goggles over her eyes.

The sun had continued to set, but they could still a portion of it lingering above the tree tops.

"This is great," Harlen breathed. "Deana,-"

"I see it! These are much better than our viewing boxes."

"Maybe you should let your father have a turn," Elizabeth suggested.

"No. I think I have the best view on the mountain right now." Declan smiled down on his children. "You two are good with them. You planning to have your own young any time soon?"

"Oh. We're not…" John turned helplessly to Elizabeth, once again having no damn idea how to navigate this one. His team might have figured it out and Declan obviously suspected, but he and Elizabeth hadn't ever really discussed what their relationship meant, much less talked about taking it public in any official way. He'd no idea if she would even want that.

"We're not trying for one. Not yet, anyway," she said, raising a brow speculatively towards John. She laughed when his mouth opened as he tried- and failed- to respond to that in any way.

It wasn't that the idea horrified him; the shock was in discovering it was the opposite. He'd felt a surge of…something he couldn't quite describe at the thought. All he knew it that it was something good, something beyond what he'd thought himself ever capable of feeling.

"Just remember what I said, Sheppard," Declan said as a wicked grin claimed his face. "If you need any pointers-"

"We've got it covered," John hastily responded.

Elizabeth seemed amused that he'd recovered his verbal abilities so quickly after Declan's light jab.

Declan gave a great hearty laugh. "I'll believe that when I see your own boy bouncing on your knee, but know the odds are in your favor tonight. We always seem to get a fresh batch of quanmar babies about nine months after the darkness."

"Quanmar babies? Moon babies?" Elizabeth asked.

"Our people all get the night off from their work assignments," Declan said. "They put that free time to good use celebrating that the demon didn't steal their women."

"We have something similar where we're from," John said. "We call them Superbowl babies."

"Super…bowl?" Declan's brows raised. "I'm not sure I want to know."

"It's probably just as well," Elizabeth laughed.

"Declan." One of his beefy guards stepped out into rotunda. "They are all in. We're making the final counts."

"Final counts of what?" John asked.

"Our people." Declan's expression turned somber. "Come children, it is time to go."

"Will you let us know either way?" Elizabeth asked. "I'm not sure I'll sleep not knowing."

Declan nodded as they left. It seemed unnervingly quiet without the chatter of Declan and the kids. It seemed colder somehow, though John knew the temperature couldn't have dropped that dramatically in a matter of seconds.

"Can you imagine doing a head count after each eclipse?" Elizabeth shuddered and as John glanced to the side realizing it wasn't just him.

A chill had descended and it had little to do with the weather.

~TBC

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed! Many thanks to all who left reviews, I always love to hear you thoughts.

I underestimated my muses sugar high which means one more chapter to wrap this story up. :) It'll post within a week or two. You can follow the story for alerts when it post.


	3. Chapter 3

They were staying just a few doors down from Declan in an unoccupied home about the size of a small hotel suite. A single lantern cast a warm light over the open room that had a sleeping area off to one side and an eating and seating area to the right. It was clean and cozy, but he still frowned as he looked around. Noticeably absent from their temporary accommodations was a bathroom.

"Just once, I wish we'd get stuck overnight on a planet that has modern plumbing," John said as he closed the door behind him.

While he'd been gone, Elizabeth had exchanged her uniform shirt for a tank and perched on the bed with her bare feet dangling down, not quite reaching the floor. He hadn't noticed how tall the bed was before, but it made her seem young and fragile somehow.

"They do have modern plumbing compared to most of the villages we've visited," she said. "Besides, I think you're misdirecting your wishes. Maybe you should focus on actually getting back to Atlantis each night."

"You think I don't already?" he asked. "I have a pretty strong incentive to sleep in my own bed. Your bed, rather."

"You did all the hard work in smuggling in the second bed and getting them rigged together; I think that makes it our bed." She paused and peered up at him thoughtfully. "Our room really. We should see about smuggling in an extra dresser next."

"So I can do something about all the crap I've got there?" He smiled, knowing his words would get a rise out of her. "You really like having me around that much?"

"Those were your words, not mine," she reminded. "And I think you know that I do."

Their conversation jaggedly looped back through his mind before collapsing down to a line of coherent reason. They'd just agreed to live together. In all the ways he'd imagined that conversation happening, he'd never thought it could be that easy. His eyes locked on hers and the warmth of her stare made his heart swell. Having that verbal commitment was a confirmation he hadn't realized he needed and it was a stepping stone to everything else he wanted.

She toyed with a long strand as she watched him with curiosity. He was blatantly staring like a love-struck schoolboy, and while his head and heart were engaged at a soul binding level, his body responded in a more primal manner.

His eyes scrolled down her curls and over her bare shoulders. Her tank clung to her body, and his eyes detoured over the curve of her chest, lingering for too long before continuing down her body. It was a good thing she hadn't changed out of her pants yet, or he'd be useless to anyone else that night. Just the thought of her long bare legs was enough to scramble his mind, especially if he imagined them wrapped around him.

"Was that Thompson I heard outside?" Elizabeth asked.

Her voice was soft, sleepy. Sexy. _Damn it._ He'd taken off some of his gear, but until they found out no villagers had gone missing, he was still mentally on duty or trying to be at any rate. He was failing miserably.

"John?" She prompted when he didn't respond.

"Hmm?" His eyes darted up and found knowing smile on her face. He scrubbed his hand down the back of his neck. "Yeah. They're taking turns standing watch standing watch tonight."

"I thought you and Declan had gotten pretty friendly, you still worried about them?"

"That guy's all right." Maybe he shouldn't have been surprised. He'd thought Ronon wanted to kill him the first time they met, too. "I'm not worried about him or his team, it's the rest of the people that make me nervous."

She stopped twirling her hair, and her eyes narrowed. "The villagers?"

"You saw how crazy the thought of a darkness demon made them. It's just in case any of them still have any doubts about us being monsters. I'd rather be safe than sorry. Declan has a couple of his own guys keeping an eye on things, too."

Her expression softened, and she laughed. "I don't think we'll have to worry. They're probably all busy making a fresh batch of moon babies."

He watched her gently bite her lower lip, morphing her smile into something more seductive.

It took every ounce of his willpower to keep his feet planted near the door. "If you keep looking at me like that, we're going to be working on our own moon baby before Thompson gets back." Heat rushed up his neck as his mind slowly registered what he'd said.

"What? You mean _practicing_ making a moon baby, right?"

That seed had been planted only hours ago, but it had taken hold. At the mere mention of a baby, the image of a young girl with long brown curls and green eyes flashed through his mind. He'd bet Elizabeth had been ridiculously adorable as a child. If he was stupidly smitten now each time his gaze lingered on Elizabeth, looking at her and the mini carbon copy version he imagined their daughter would look like would be his undoing.

He suddenly understood the radical metamorphosis some of his Air Force buddies had undergone when they'd become fathers. A baby was just a speck of possibility far out on the horizon, but he already felt something shifting within him. Just the thought of Elizabeth carrying a child was enough to put his nerves more on edge. He knew he'd give them everything and do anything to protect them. People thought he overreacted now when he was worried about her. They hadn't seen anything yet.

"John?"

 _Damn._ He was just stupidly staring at her again.

"Nothing would surprise me on this planet. Even practicing," John raised his brows suggestively, "as you say, might be tempting fate." He turned on his heel and started pacing the floor.

He needed to focus and wrestle some hold on rationality because even in a galaxy plagued with monsters like Wraith, tempting fate was exactly what he wanted to do.

"Are you serious?" Her eyes were full of mirth. "You're starting to sound like the villagers, they believe in demons, and you believe in what? Magic?"

"Something's going on here. A shield's protecting the Stargate and this section of the mountain. The people living here don't have any idea. _We_ didn't have any idea either. We didn't detect any unusual energy readings in our scans, yet there's a mysterious heat source warming this village. Maybe there's something more to the moon baby phenomenon beside them all getting the night off."

She smiled wryly. "I'm pretty sure we won't need any divine intervention. We seem to be adept at getting into trouble just fine on our own."

"What?" His heart jerked, and his footsteps came to a hard stop. "Are you trying to tell me something?"

"No need to panic, just… generally speaking. Today is the perfect case in point."

"I wasn't panicking. Much," he added when she raised a brow. "For the record, I think it would be kind of great; you just caught me off guard."

Her eyes glistened as she stared back at him. He didn't blame her; he was a little surprised himself. It wasn't often he managed to express something heartfelt without stumbling all over the words.

"We should probably talk about that," she said. There was a tenderness in her eyes that tugged at his heart.

His lips pressed together, and he gave her a quick nod in response. There was a list a mile long of things they should probably talk about, though he wasn't convinced he'd manage to do anything besides grunt and shuffle his feet uncomfortably. Admitting he wanted a kid had probably tapped out his meaningful communication reserves for the next month.

She patted beside her. "You should sit down. Just watching you pace is making me tired."

"Thompson will be back any second; I sent him to get an update on their head count."

"So the Marines," Elizabeth said as she rubbed her temple, "they know you're staying with me."

"There's still a potential a serial killer out there, Elizabeth. Under the circumstances, they'd probably only think it strange if I didn't stick close to you." It seemed an irrational fear when he was worried about babies that didn't exist, serial killers, and mysterious energy sources.

"Colonel Sheppard." Thompson pounded on the door.

He cracked the door open. "Any news?"

"They just confirmed a woman's missing, her name's Aura. They think it happened during the second eclipse. Apparently, her husband, Devin, likes his ale too much, no one knew she was missing until a neighbor mentioned her house had been dark all night."

"Did you meet them earlier?" He looked back and was instantly snared by Elizabeth's imploring gaze.

"No, but this has been going on for years, John."

John opened the door a little wider. "Anyone else missing?"

"She's gone, and her little girl's gone. The husband's gone too, but they say he tends to pass out in random places. They don't seem worried about him, but they're organizing search parties to find her. They're going to comb through the mountain, what sections are still accessible anyway. They're set to head out in a few minutes, sir."

John's eyes remained on Elizabeth. "Okay. Round up the others. You're staying here with Elizabeth. The rest of the them are with me."

He shut the door and turned back to her. Her head was down, and her rigid posture made him instantly uneasy. "What's wrong? I thought you wanted to help them."

"I do want to help them." She raised her head to meet his eyes. "I just don't like the idea of splitting up again."

"Elizabeth, I can't…." Coming with them would put her at risk, and he couldn't handle losing her twice in one day.

"It's okay. I understand. You should finish gearing up," she said. "You don't have much time."

Her tone was light, but he'd hurt her, he could see it in her eyes. It wasn't because he'd been overbearingly protective, she was adept at dealing with that side of him by now. It was because he'd screwed up and made a snap decision as military commander when he was standing in their bedroom. Had they been anywhere else she probably would have already had some curt words to essentially tell him to get his head out of his ass, but he'd caught her when she'd been unguarded in their private space.

He crossed the room, marveling again how tiny her frame seemed while she perched on the huge bed. As his eyes caressed over her body, understanding sank into his thick head. Whenever he was worried about her, she seemed fragile, delicate. She was anything but weak, but it would never lessen his conviction. She was something that must be protected at all costs.

"I don't think you do understand," John said. "I was looking at you when I gave the order for Thompson to stay."

She shoved off the bed and stood before him. "You mean when you ordered me to stay without actually having to say the words."

He gritted his teeth, wondering if he had any hope of making it better instead of worse. "You don't get it. I was looking at you, Elizabeth. Not Dr. Weir. I was looking at my…" _Shit._ More and more the word wife sprang to mind, and he couldn't seem to bring himself to call her anything else aloud. He closed the gap between them, coiling an arm around her waist and cradling her face in his hand. "It's just, you're important. I need you to get that. The only thing I need in my life is to know you're protected."

Her mouth opened, but she didn't speak. She just kept searching his eyes.

"Are we okay here?" he asked. It was an asinine question, this would normally be the part where a woman would stalk off and slam doors, but Elizabeth gifted him with a real smile and pulled him into a hug.

"Just try to bring yourself back without any more injuries." She pressed a kiss just beside his ear. "Otherwise there won't be anywhere left I can kiss you without hurting you."

He just stared at her in amazement when she pulled away. He was crappy at this relationship stuff, but he couldn't begin to understand this. He knew she'd probably been a little mad and maybe a little disappointed in him, but her hug had been fierce and the love in her eyes genuine.

"You need to hurry," she reminded. "They're leaving soon."

"Did you even want to come with us?" He instantly regretted asking.

"No." A hint of red tinged her cheeks. "My head finally feels better from whatever that drug was the men used; I don't want to risk one of them trying to save me again. Plus, someone should stay close to Jana. I'd hate for her to be alone and have an adverse reaction to the medicine."

"So you're doing what you want, but you're still not happy?" His forehead furrowed.

"I'm not happy, but that's okay. It's good even." She looked like she was trying not to laugh. "You should only worry if I'm eager for you to run off and leave me alone."

It was a damn shame there wasn't a reputable diamond broker in the Pegasus Galaxy. He'd take a disreputable dealer of cubic zirconia at this point, anything that could seal this deal before he did something to screw this up. He didn't deserve her. He still hadn't managed the words even to tell her how much he cared.

It took him another minute to tear his eyes away, and then they both rushed to get ready. Elizabeth dressed while he pulled back on his tactical vest and grabbed his P90. She finished and stood by the door watching as he quickly inventoried his supplies.

"I thought women were supposed to be the ones who take forever to get ready," she teased.

"Most women accessorize with some jewelry, not thirty pounds of tactical gear." He eyed her suspiciously. "Speaking of which, where's your sidearm?"

She squared her shoulders. "I'll be with Thompson."

He suppressed a growl. "I don't care who you're with. You promised to carry it whenever you were off-world." And even that had been a compromise. Ideally, she'd carry a sidearm and P90 like the rest of them.

She opened her jacket and pointed at the zippered interior pocket. He stepped closer and unzipped it, before pulling out and inspecting her Beretta.

This time he didn't entirely suppress the growl as his eyes slanted down at her. "It would work better if it was loaded."

She took her Beretta and secured it back in her pocket. "I'm not going to keep a loaded gun in my pocket, and I don't want to carry it in a holster or where it's visible. It's not the message I want to send when we're off-world." She patted her other pocket. "The magazines are right here."

"Sir?" Thompson called through the door. "They're getting ready to move out."

She stretched up and gave John a quick kiss before opening the door. "Remember what I said. See what you can do to bring yourself back in one piece."

"See what _you_ can do to take it easy on your security detail. No slipping away, no getting yourself saved again by crazy villagers."

"Then you'd better hurry," she said, giving him a sly grin as she slipped out the door. "Remember, we're trouble magnets."

"That's not funny, Elizabeth." He washed his hand over his face and rubbed his chin as she strutted off, heading directly towards Declan's.

John walked towards the Marines, watching as Thompson trotted to catch up with her. He kept an eye on them both until she reached Declan's house. She looked back only once before she moved inside. The moment she was out of sight, his gut started twisting uncomfortably.

~v~v~v~

Elizabeth tapped lightly on the door and startled when Jana's sister Lavana immediately opened it. Harlen and Deana were right behind her, both rubbing their sleepy eyes.

"Elizabeth." Lavana's eyes darted around. "Is everything all right? We were just leaving."

"My team's going to help with the search. I thought I would sit with Jana while they were gone. What's going on? You seem nervous."

Lavana blinked rapidly. "I was just surprised to find you here. Everyone is distressed over Aura's disappearance. I suppose we are all a bit on edge." She opened the door wider. "Jana is sleeping. I'm taking the children back to my home while their father is away. Perhaps you could return later."

While Lavana's response was plausible on the surface, Elizabeth had spent time with her earlier that day, and she hadn't seemed the type who would easily become ruffled. Something else was going on.

"I won't bother her, but someone should stay close in case she has any reactions to the medicine." Elizabeth moved past Lavana into the home.

Lavana hesitated for a moment before her shoulders sank in resignation. "Very well then. My home is five houses down. If you need anything-"

"I'm sure we'll be fine. Just get those little ones back in bed, they look like they're about to fall asleep standing up." She smiled and reached out to affectionately ruffle Harlen's hair.

He gave her a wide, goofy grin and waved as Lavana reluctantly herded them out the door. Elizabeth had just shut the door behind them when she heard voices coming from Jana's bedroom.

She moved quickly towards the door and rapped lightly. "Jana? Are you all right?" The house fell unnaturally silent. She gingerly opened the door a crack before sucking in a deep breath and throwing it all the way open. "Jana?"

Jana stood beside the bed along the back wall. She wore dark pants, boots, and sleeveless top. She had donned a capelike hooded coat, and she clutched a spear in her hand that was nearly as tall as her. She looked like a huntress, beautiful, but lethal. And sick, Elizabeth thought looking at her long dark braid contrasting against her pale skin and flushed cheeks.

As the initial shock wore off, she saw Jana wasn't alone; there was a woman at her side. The stranger's coat didn't close in the front due her to her protruding, pregnant stomach. A soft whimpering emerged from behind Jana's cape, and as she shifted, Elizabeth caught a glimpse of a little girl hiding behind them, tightly clutching a small cloth doll.

Jana coughed, and the woman beside her patted her shoulder. "Jana, are you sure we can do this tonight?"

"We must. It's not safe for you to remain here, Aura. Not after what happened last night."

Elizabeth felt her eyes stretch as understanding sank in. "You're the one they're looking for."

"Yes. Along with my daughter, Jocasta." Aura's indicated the little girl at her side. "Will you tell the others?"

"Show her what he does to you. She will not betray us once she knows the truth." Jana's voice was calm and, even while sick, she exuded a quiet strength.

Aura shook her head. "Pity will not help me."

"She won't pity you, but she needs to understand. Please, Aura."

Aura's hands shook as she pulled away her heavy coat and pushed up the sleeve of her loose dress. Her wrist was swollen and her arm badly bruised.

"Your partner did this?" Elizabeth ached for the woman and for her child. The little girl had quieted, but she stared up at Elizabeth with huge, haunted eyes. "She's not the first woman you've helped, is she, Jana?"

"I have helped many."

"There is no abductor," Elizabeth said as the pieces slipped into place. "You're helping women disappear, using the darkness demon as a cover. Why would you do that? Not help them, but help them in such secrecy?"

"No one else can protect these women. Where would they go if they left their home? Other worlds are not always welcoming, and if they are taken in, they'd be expected to become someone's partner again almost immediately. It takes time for these women to heal, sometimes they are never ready to pair again."

"You sound as if you are speaking from experience," Elizabeth said gently.

Jana's stare was unwavering. "I wasn't always strong. Others once helped me. It is my duty to repay that kindness and to help others in turn."

Elizabeth's mind raced to fill in the blanks. Of everything she still didn't know, there was one thing of which she was certain. "Declan doesn't know, does he?"

A pained look flashed through Jana's eyes. "No. He does not."

Elizabeth could think of only one reason Jana would conceal this from him. "Is that why you haven't told him?" she asked. "You don't want him to know why it's so important to you?"

"He sleeps better not knowing of the life I lived before him. The man who hurt me still lives and Declan would never rest until he thought justice had been served. The world I came from…there is true evil among them. I fear for his safety if he sought them out. I carry enough pain and regret. I could not bear to shoulder more."

She tried to imagine what it would be like to make that choice. As she thought of telling John something like that, images of Koyla and the storm flashed unbidden through her mind. She'd little doubt that John would unleash the wrath of hell on anyone he'd learned hurt her. He'd already done it once before.

The thought reminded her of the world around them, and Elizabeth quickly shut the bedroom door behind her, concealing the room from anyone who might enter the home. "Where do you take them? Where is it is safe?" she asked as she stepped closer.

"We can talk more once I return, but now I must go." Jana removed a panel from the back wall exposing an exit. "The men are already searching, and I must get them out of the mountain while they are distracted."

"But, Jana, you are ill. Is there anyone else that can take them? What about your sister?" Lavana had been acting suspiciously; she had to have known what Jana was up to.

"Lavana was injured assisting me during the darkness several cycles ago. She still limps, she can't make this journey as quickly as we must travel."

Elizabeth eyed her closely. "What kind of journey? Do you have to travel through the Stargate?" It sounded ominous, especially if her sister had incurred that type of injury making the trip. "You might feel better, but it's just because of the pain reliever, it reduced your fever. It will take days for the medicine to heal you and even longer to regain your full strength."

Jana sucked in a breath, seeming to temper a frustration. "The time draws near for Aura to give birth. If we wait any longer, she will be unable to travel, and the next darkness is far away. There is a village on the other side of the mountain. If we hurry, we can reach it within the hour."

An hours walk meant three, maybe four miles. Elizabeth's eyes swung from Jocasta to Aura before settling back on Jana. Young, pregnant, and sick. They wouldn't make it alone. "Then I'm coming with you. It will be difficult enough to get there under the circumstances, Jana, I don't want you to travel back by yourself." Elizabeth tapped her earbud. "John? Do you read me?"

"Stop." Jana's voice was firm. "You must not speak of this to anyone."

Elizabeth frowned in the silence that followed. "You don't have to worry. He's not responding." There was probably interference within the mountain. She sighed and decided to worry about John's reaction after she'd gotten Jana safely back in bed. "Are you certain you're up for this?"

Jana ushered them out of the home. "I have made the journey while ill and while heavy with child. I will be fine."

They waited between the home and cavern wall as Jana replaced the panel, masking their exit route. Elizabeth had a small flashlight stowed in her jacket. She fished it out and flicked it on, supplementing the light from Aura and Jana's lanterns.

Aura carried a bag in her other hand while Jocasta had a small bundle strapped to her back. It was a pitiful number of personal items from which to start over.

"Come. Quietly," Jana said. "We have been unable to locate her partner, Devin, and he never joins the search parties. He could still be nearby."

They followed Jana as she skirted the edge of the cavern wall. Loose rocks on the ground made it difficult to keep sound footing and move quietly.

They made their way behind several more homes before Jana waved them towards a tight crevice in the mountain wall. There was just enough room for Aura to maneuver herself though, but it opened to a large pathway, permitting them easy access away from the village.

Elizabeth zipped her jacket up to her chin, wishing she'd dressed in more layers. The space was markedly colder than the rooms that housed the village. She shouldn't have discarded John's concerns about a protective field and mysterious heat source so easily, but that kind of oddity had begun to seem normal here in the Pegasus Galaxy. He'd been right; there was something more going on, something even beyond Jana being the demon of darkness.

Questions raced through her mind as they cut their way through the mountain. "The others don't know about these passages?" Elizabeth asked.

"No. I have concealed their existence. You've seen how the men are when the darkness comes and I needed a way for the women to exit without encountering them along the way."

"How did you find it?"

Jana glanced back at Elizabeth. "I told you I was once helped by others. This is their world. When your kind inhabited the city of the Ancients and Declan decided we would leave our homes, I brought them here."

That probably made it easier to get them to safety, Elizabeth supposed. "But how do you keep this place a secret? Shouldn't they have discovered it? And who are these others who live on this world?" She was starting to feel like a child for peppering Jana with so many questions, but every time she asked one, another sprang onto her mind.

"That you will see soon enough. Come. I have never made such a late start. The men's search will conclude before we return. We must hurry."

They entered a room with a stone staircase and started descending carefully. Aura stayed close to the cavern wall, taking slow and careful steps.

Aura's hands were full, so Elizabeth took Jocasta's hand. "It's so you can protect me," she said. "You seem like a brave girl."

The child smiled for the first time since Elizabeth had met her and squeezed her hand in response.

Jana's coughing echoed loudly as they exited the stairs into a small room. There was a wooden elevator like the one Elizabeth had used to reach the mountain village earlier that day.

Jocasta slipped away from Elizabeth as they moved onto the platform and nestled in at her mother's side. She had the same brown hair and warm eyes of her mother; she was just a bit younger than Deana. The thought gave her pause. Elizabeth couldn't fathom Declan allowing anyone to hurt a mother or child under his protection.

"Jana, I've seen Declan with you and your children. I find it hard to believe he would tolerate this kind of abuse."

"Without them bearing witness, it can be difficult to prove." Jana stepped over to the levers, and the elevator lurched into motion. "And not all of the women I've helped are from within our village. Others have heard stories, and they sought me out. There would be nothing he could do to protect those not living among us."

"But you should give him a chance to protect those that do."

Jana held the lantern higher, illuminating her face and allowing Elizabeth to read a riot of emotion within her eyes.

"The best way for him to protect the most people is to allow me to handle this," Jana said. "Men would resent his interference in their relationships, making it more difficult for him to retain control. We have created a stable community, more peaceful than what most of these people have known in their lifetime. That must be preserved at all costs. Our children's lives, they deserve better than our own."

Elizabeth felt a nagging ache of sadness tinged with regret. The Wraith had proved an evil impossible to ignore and, as their expedition focused on survival, it had been too easy to overlook other problems that plagued this galaxy. Health care, education, and sanitation were often blatantly lacking on many worlds, but she was ashamed to realize she'd never asked about women's rights and domestic violence, even from worlds with which they actively traded.

The elevator shuddered, and the wood creaked while it slowly descended. Jana remained intent on the controls until it jerked to a stop.

"Mother!" Jocasta's eyes were tearing. "It's Damiya. She is gone."

"Damiya?" Elizabeth asked.

"It's her doll." Aura's eyes scoured the ground, but the platform beneath their feet was empty.

"We must find her!" Jocasta tugged at her mother's skirts. "Please."

"Listen to me, little one." Jana squatted down beside Jocasta and wiped the tears from her face. "We are not safe here, but soon you will be. I promise I will find Damiya and keep her safe until I can bring her to you. Okay?"

Tears streamed down the little girl's face, but she nodded obediently. She took hold of her mother's skirt and trailed behind, her head constantly turning back as they moved down the passage as if her doll would just suddenly appear.

The tunnel abruptly ended, and they stepped out, emerging in a thinly wooded area. Wide paths among the trees allowed the moonlight through to illuminate the area with a gentle light. The temperature was much warmer in these lower elevations, and Elizabeth breathed deeply inhaling the fragrant scent of flowers.

"We'll leave the lanterns here." Jana took the lantern from Aura and tucked them away near the entrance to the mountain.

Elizabeth stowed her flashlight and did a double take as she glanced at the sky. The light wasn't coming from above. It was a new moon, and the sky above was dark. "Where is the light coming from?" she asked.

"The path always glows brightly for me," Jana replied.

That sounded like the fever talking, Elizabeth thought, but she glanced around discovering many of the plants and flowers glowing in vibrant hues she'd never seen before. Bioluminescence, she realized. It was breathtaking.

Some of the plants seemed to stretch towards them as they moved through the forest. Jana didn't give them a second glance and Aura just seemed exhausted, but Jocasta's eyes were wide as saucers as she turned her head back and forth looking wondrously at the spectrum of colors around them.

A flash of light dropped before them, descending much like a spider on a strand of web, but this insect resembled a fuzzy and glowing caterpillar. Jocasta squealed as it landed on her and circled itself around her wrist.

"Mother," Jocasta whimpered.

Jana moved towards her and pulled up her wrist for inspection. "It is all right, little one. They will not harm you, but they always have been fond of the children. It will stay with you until we reach the village, your own little lantern."

Jocasta eyed it anxiously.

"Would you prefer me to remove it?" Jana asked.

Jocasta gingerly reached out to touch it, her face breaking into a grin as she stroked over its fuzzy exterior. "No. I think it likes me."

"I believe you are right, my child." Aura reached down and brushed her fingers over Jocasta's cheek. "Come. Let's keep moving."

"How are you feeling, Aura?" Elizabeth asked. Aura had been rubbing her stomach almost incessantly, and her footsteps had slowed considerably.

"I am fine." She faltered under Elizabeth's skeptical stare. "I will be fine," she revised. "I am always tired these days, what is the difference if I am tired and taking a walk or tired and tidying my home? And the walk has a much better view." She waved her arm, indicating the area around him.

There was that. The area around them was incomparable to anything she'd seen or anything she might have imagined. John would love this, she thought, and her heart lurched. He'd be beside himself once he returned and discovered her missing. Even if Declan wasn't in the habit of immediately returning home, she knew John would seek her out before doing anything else.

In her haste, she hadn't even told Thompson she was leaving. She should have brought him with them, though Jana wouldn't have approved and he would have probably just frightened Aura and Jocasta. Still, if she had, John might not be as ticked off as he was bound to be after discovering she was okay.

She sighed, realizing it was too late to second guess everything. It was going to be a long night.

~v~v~v~

The search had been a bust, successful only in spiking John's level of irritability. They'd found nothing. Because of the flooding earlier, they knew the woman and kid had to be stashed somewhere in this mountain. They couldn't have reached the lower levels to exit, but whoever took them would have heard the villager's search teams coming a mile away and had easily managed to elude them. The mountain had countless nooks and crannies for them to tuck into and, with so many people searching, his life sign scanner had been useless.

Declan's face was flushed. He was just as frustrated as John. He'd tried to get some of the search teams to return earlier at John's suggestion, but reasoning with them had proved impossible.

Thompson stood up as they approached. "Any luck, sir?" he asked as Declan moved past him and entered his home.

John shook his head. "How are things here?"

"Quiet," Thompson said. "I haven't seen Dr. Weir since you left."

The hairs bristled on his neck, and he cocked his head back. "We've been gone over an hour. You didn't check on her?"

Thompson took a quick step back. "I didn't think-"

"Sheppard." Declan strode back out. "They're not here. The children are gone, too."

"The kids left with a woman, just after Dr. Weir arrived," Thompson said. "She had dark hair and walked with a limp."

"That'd be her sister. I'll check her house." Declan swiftly strode off.

John's gut churned. "Thompson, if she's missing-"

"Sir, no one else left. I swear. I've been outside the front door the whole time."

John studied his face. "Well if they didn't come out the front door, where the hell are they?"

"I don't know, is there another exit?"

Not that John remembered seeing, but it was worth a look. Thompson followed him as he moved behind the home. The back was a solid wall of wood boards held together by wooden pegs. There were no windows or doors.

"Let's say they magically exited this way," John said. "Where would they have gone?" Better yet, why?

The thought chilled John to his core. He couldn't imagine any scenario where Elizabeth would have willingly left without contacting him first or at least speaking with Thompson.

John started making his way behind the line of houses.

"Maybe they are at the sister's place," Thompson said

They'd have told Thompson. There would have been no need to hide that from him. It was something else. He looked along the floor and cavern walls as if he'd find a trail of breadcrumbs. He tried the life sign scanner, and it lit up like a Christmas tree. Damn villagers were everywhere; it'd be no help here.

John did a double take as he spotted Declan yards away in a clearing between the front of two homes. He was standing still with his head down and heavy shoulders.

He froze for a minute, understanding what it meant. Jana was missing. Elizabeth was missing. His heart leapt into his throat as he remembered her words. She hadn't wanted to split up. Why the hell had he let her out of his sight?

Thompson stared hesitatingly at John for a moment before yelling towards Declan. "Anything, sir?"

Declan looked up, seeming startled to see them there. "The kids are with her sister, but Jana's gone."

John's jaw clenched. He should never have left her, not after everything they'd already been through that day.

His eyes caught on a fleck of white up ahead. It looked like a scrap of fabric sticking out from the rock wall. He stepped forward and bent to retrieve it, discovering it was a small cloth doll. He flipped the light on his P90 and directed it to the cavern wall. "Declan!"

"No need to shout, I'm right here."

John turned and watched Declan gap the final steps between them. "I found something; there's an opening here." He flashed the light that way as he tucked the doll into one of his pockets.

"That's no opening," Declan scoffed. "You can't get through there."

"Sure I can." John turned sideways and shimmied his way inside, finding the crevice opened into a larger passageway.

"Okay, so maybe I just can't get through there." Declan frowned as he peered inside.

"If you're coming with me you'd better try." John moved deeper inside. "Thompson. Let's go."

"Do you want me to get my team?"

"Negative." John didn't want to take the time or risk the attention of any villagers.

He paused only to make sure they got through. It wasn't Thompson he was worried about; it was Declan's monstrous frame that concerned him. The guy was built like a pro wrestler, and he was already frustrated as hell.

"Hand Thompson the hammer," John called.

In his current frame of mind, Declan would probably tear into the mountain wall to enlarge the opening if he didn't fit and there was no way the villagers would miss that kind of noise. Thankfully, Declan heeded his advice and handed the hammer over.

Had Elizabeth not been missing, John would have been amused at the site of Declan trying to squeeze through the crevice. After some serious grunting, cursing, and squeezing, he finally made it.

He snatched his hammer back and gave John a hard look. "We're going to have words if I did all that for nothing."

"Not for nothing." John pointed his P90 towards the floor, his light illuminating the path. "Someone's been through here recently." And the tread marks of one of the boots was familiar. He'd no doubt Elizabeth had been this way. She was walking, at least. Whatever was going on, she hadn't been drugged, and she wasn't being dragged.

His gut churned as he thought of the doll he'd found. If the abductor had made a second sweep of the village while the men had been out searching, he could have easily pressured Elizabeth and Jana into coming with them by threatening Aura and her child.

"Declan, did you ever find any of those women who'd gone missing?"

Declan shook his head. "We only found the two partners who'd been killed."

"Then pick up the pace, both of you," he snapped. Whoever this asshole was had a hell of a head start, but there was no way John was letting him slip away this time.

~v~v~v~

They'd walked around two miles since exiting the mountain, and the scenery had been enchanting the entire way. Jana's guarded watchfulness was the only reminder that they were traveling under more dire circumstances. A group of fireflies the size of bumblebees had met them when they left the wooded forest. One small group provided clusters of amber light to their sides while another group raced ahead as if marking the path for them to follow.

"It's like they know where we're going," Elizabeth breathed. "I've never seen anything like this."

"Nor had I before my first visit here," Jana said. "But this world, it is special."

"What about tsunami waves or earthquakes? Is this village in the path?" she asked.

"The earthquakes are always worse to the south and the mountain blocks the walls of water," Jana said.

They were working their way through a grassy field, and Elizabeth sucked in her breath as her eyes caught on a new source of light. It was a pool of crystalline water, shimmering more brightly than a firework explosion cascading through the sky.

After blinking, she could pinpoint spots of the inky dark water between the endless specks of glowing blue-white light. It looked like someone had covered the lake with a tight net of twinkle lights, except these lights were in unending movement, crashing together before tearing apart, constantly rippling into new configurations.

"Jana," Aura reached out and touched her arm. "It's more incredible than you described."

Jana smiled proudly. "This world has been marked by the gods, an ordinary woman such as myself could never find the words to explain."

"Jana, you are anything but ordinary," Elizabeth said. "I hope you can find a way to share your work with your people one day. Girls should know women like you are out there. They need strong role models so they will grow up confident."

"Confident?" Jana's forehead furrowed.

"Strength of mind. Belief in themselves. I know you're afraid this secret could weaken Declan's authority, but I believe it would strengthen it. You want your children's lives to be better; this is something that would empower women, it could have an overwhelmingly powerful impact on your community." Elizabeth paused for a moment watching Jana consider her words. "And what you are doing is important. If you were ever injured like your sister, who would carry on your work?"

"There are others who do what I do, but your point is taken. I will consider it."

"I think after you tell Declan, the rest will come easily."

Jana gave a little huff of laughter. "That is easier said than done. Would you want to tell Declan?"

Elizabeth's eyes scanned thoughtfully over Jana, taking in her fierce looking form. "I think he'll be too much in awe to be upset."

Jana seemed amused as they continued moving through the night. It was darker here without the bioluminescence from all the foliage. A few glowing wildflowers were interspersed through the grass, casting a soft light on the ground, but it was the fireflies who lit the way, leading them directly to the lake.

"I don't understand. Why are we heading straight for the water?" Elizabeth asked.

"You will see."

From this distance, Elizabeth could discern bioluminescent aquatic animals dancing throughout the water, many resembling Earth's jellyfish and sea anemones. There was a compact colony of coral illuminated in a rainbow of colors, but most of the sea creatures and microorganisms glowed in a similar blue-white light.

As they neared the shore, the single-celled organisms all clustered tightly together, their combined light strengthened, dazzling much like the event horizon of the Stargate, but rather than being circular, it extended across the lake. Once again, Elizabeth felt like the world was illuminating a path for them, but this was one they could not follow.

She turned to Jana and gasped as she stepped onto the lake. There wasn't a single splash; she never made contact with the water. Each step met with a glimmering, lighted surface that made her appear to be walking over the water

"You're an Ancient," Elizabeth said. "No, you're ill, that can't be possible." Of course, bioluminescent organisms with the ability to form shields people could walk across hardly seemed possible either.

Jana turned back, beckoning for them to follow. "I am known to this village, and I am welcome to enter. So are those that accompany me. It is just beyond the water."

Elizabeth steeled herself and took a step. Her steps felt surprisingly springy as if she was walking over a manicured lawn of tightly seeded grass.

She turned back and watched as Aura grasped her little girl's hand and followed, placing each step as if she were walking on ice and expected it to shatter any moment.

Jana wobbled ahead, stepping sideways on the path. Instead of tumbling into the lake, the light rushed out beneath her feet, maintaining a steady surface for her to travel over.

Elizabeth jogged ahead to her side. "Are you all right?"

"As you said, the medicine has only masked the symptoms. I am weaker than I anticipated, but I will be okay. We are almost there."

They didn't have much choice except to move forward, so Elizabeth grudgingly nodded and continued following beside her. "How long does it take to reach the village?"

"It is about a ten-minute walk through the lake."

The Scalinos didn't have any boats that she was aware of, and they had yet to meet any worlds in the Pegasus Galaxy with strong swimmers. If the bridge only appeared for Jana or people of that village, it was no wonder the Scalinos hadn't discovered it yet.

"The village is concealed by dense forest, and it is surrounded by water on all sides," Jana said as if reading her mind.

An island surrounded by a saltwater lake on a world, that in Jana's words, had been marked by a god. Elizabeth had her own ideas about that.

"How many people live there?" she asked.

"I am unsure. Hundreds."

"And they keep themselves hidden from the rest of the galaxy?"

"Their village is protected; the Wraith can't harm them there. Why would they wish to leave?"

That sounded uncomfortably familiar. "Do you know how it's protected, how all of…this works?" Elizabeth pointed towards the seemingly magical path they were crossing.

"It's not my story to tell." Jana paused while she coughed hard enough to make Elizabeth wince in response. "I shall introduce you to Sera once we arrive."

"Who is Sera?" Elizabeth asked.

"She is a distant relative."

Relative? That threw a wrench in her theory. "I thought your sister was your only family besides Declan and your children."

Jana didn't respond, and Elizabeth tracked her eyes, finding the lighted path dead-ending into a wall of darkness.

Her eyes adjusted to focus and she slowly recognized the banks of a rocky shore. She followed Jana as she stepped up onto the island. Fireflies quickly clustered at her side and plants flared to life around them, glowing in a rainbow of colors.

Elizabeth waited for Aura to reach her and she extended a hand to assist onto the island. She turned back to reach for Jocasta, but the little girl wasn't there.

Her chest filled with dread. "Aura, where is Jocasta?" Elizabeth asked. The child was quiet; she could have been gone for minutes if Aura had been distracted. Given that the woman was pregnant, tired, and walking across a magical path over a lake, distraction was pretty much a given.

"She…she was just with me."

They all looked back to the lake. The pathway had dispersed, separating back into millions of dots of light scattered throughout the inky depths of the lake.

"When?" Jana stepped back down onto the water, and tiny flecks of light instantly swarmed together to support her weight.

"She was with me when she crossed onto the water…but I don't…I'm not sure-"

"There is a cluster of fireflies on the other side of the lake. Would she have turned back to find her doll?" Elizabeth asked.

"Yes." Aura's face paled. "I shouldn't have taken my eyes off her."

Jana started running. Elizabeth guided Aura back down onto the path, and they followed behind.

Elizabeth glanced sideways at Aura. "Will you be okay if I-"

"Go, please. Help Jana find her."

Elizabeth squeezed her arm and broke into a run. Jana was well ahead of her, but she was still weak from her illness, and Elizabeth caught up with her just as they reached the grassy field.

Jana paused, holding her chest as a coughing fit overtook her. Elizabeth quickly scanned the area. The cluster of fireflies had moved off to the right…away from the path that would have led back to the mountain.

She pointed towards them. "Have the fireflies ever lead you in the wrong direction?"

Jana's face tightened with concentration. She angled her spear forward and turned in a slow circle as she scrutinized the field around them.

"Jana?" she prompted.

"Only twice have I seen them either go dark or detour from the path," she said. "Someone is out here. Our herd of animals is less than an hour walk to the north. I've never seen anyone in this area after the darkness, but perhaps someone was cut off from the mountain because of the flooding."

Elizabeth felt a nagging sensation, there was something just under the surface and just out of grasp of her memory.

"This way." Jana pointed her spear towards the fireflies, and they started running.

The fireflies were moving farther away, but back towards the tree line. It took them minutes longer to reach the woods, and the second they stepped under the canopy of the trees, the fireflies went dark.

Elizabeth pulled out her flashlight, but Jana pulled her hand down. "Wait," she said. "Give your eyes a moment to focus."

She flicked off the light and waited. A twig snapped yards away and, in the distance, the cawing of a nocturnal bird shrilled through the air, sending a rash of goosebumps racing across her skin. A moment later, she saw a faint glow of something that looked like a bracelet. _Jocasta._

Elizabeth nudged Jana with her elbow and pointed towards the dim light.

"Come, little one," Jana called. "It is not safe to stay out there alone. We can use your torch now, Elizabeth."

She directed the light up, and they moved towards the light of Jocasta's glowing caterpillar. The little girl started running towards them, and she hurtled herself into Elizabeth's arms.

"I wanted to find Damiya, but I got lost. The lighted insects led me the wrong way."

Elizabeth shushed her soothingly and hugged her. "I'm glad you decided to keep your friend." She released her hold on Jocasta and pointed towards the caterpillar. "We wouldn't have found you without it."

Jocasta managed a small smile and wiped her eyes as Elizabeth released her. "Let's get you back to your mother now."

"Yes, little one," Jana said. "I promised that I would reunite you with Damiya, but first we must get you to your new home."

"Is it pretty there?" Jocasta sniffed.

"It is beautiful, and the people are very kind." Jana reached for her hand and started walking. "You will be safe and happy there."

"I'll miss the mountain," Jocasta said.

"There are two underground caverns, little one. Twice the fun." Jana paused as they reached the open field.

Twice. Again, that word spurred a nagging sensation. A woman's scream cut through the darkness and a steely cold flooded Elizabeth's veins as Declan's words come rushing back to her. Twice they'd found women's partners dead after they'd disappeared. Her head jerked to the side as Jana leveled out her spear and started running. She didn't just look lethal, Elizabeth realized. She was.

Jocasta remained frozen by her side. Elizabeth didn't want to take the child with her, but it wasn't any safer to leave her behind. She reluctantly pulled out her Berretta and loaded a magazine. She pulled back the slide back to chamber a round and lowered the barrel towards the ground. She grasped it tightly, keeping her finger carefully away from the trigger.

"Stay behind me, Jocasta."

The little girl nodded numbly.

"Take my flashlight; you can point it ahead and light our path."

She took the flashlight with curiosity, immediately turning the light up and blasting herself in the eyes.

Elizabeth quickly re-directed the light out in front of them. "Hold it like this. It will hurt your eyes if you shine it into your face."

Another scream sent them both bounding forward.

"That's my mother, isn't it? My father has found us."

That was Elizabeth's suspicion as well. She'd never enjoyed dealing with angry drunks, but she had a feeling the man was going to meet his match in Jana.

Elizabeth kept her pace slow enough for Jocasta to keep up and it took them a few minutes to catch up to Jana. She was standing motionless holding her spear off to her side.

Elizabeth's eyes darted around. "Where is Aura?"

Jocasta swung the beam of light in a wide arc before them, and Elizabeth's heart constricted when she spotted Aura struggling in a man's clutches.

"Father, stop it!" Jocasta cried out. "Why must you be so mean to her?" Jocasta sounded more angry than scared.

"Shut up, girl," the man growled. "I didn't give you permission to speak."

Elizabeth's teeth clenched, and she pulled Jocasta firmly behind her. If he spoke to his daughter that way before others, it sickened her to think of how he must have treated his family behind closed doors.

"That is Devin," Jana said quietly. "He has a knife to her stomach."

Elizabeth's chest tightened. Devin wasn't very tall, but he was stocky. His ruddy face was screwed up tight with anger, and he glared down at Aura.

Her nerves may have been bristling, but an angry heat seared through her veins as she watched Devin hold Aura back against his chest, much the way Koyla had when he tried to drag her through the Stargate.

Jana leaned closer. "If he was trapped on this side of the mountain all night, he probably ran out of his ale long ago."

So instead of dealing with a sloppy drunk, they'd be dealing with the irrational anger of an alcoholic going through withdrawal.

"Jocasta, keep the light on them," Elizabeth said as the static like hum of her earbud flared to life.

"Elizabeth," John's voice crackled. "Can you hear me?"

Her heart skipped a beat, and she let out a breath of relief before realizing just because she could hear John, didn't mean he was close enough to help.

Before she could respond, Devin started backing up, dragging Aura along with him. "Come no closer or I will kill her."

The knife's blade glimmered, reflecting back the beam of the flashlight. Tears streamed down Aura's face as she stumbled and Devin jerked her up by her hair.

"Devin, you must stop this." Despite the tears, Aura's voice was surprisingly strong. "How do you think the others will react once they've learned how you've treated me? It is time to let me go. The stars did not align for our match. We were never meant to be together."

The wind rolled through, carrying with it the bitter stench of stale alcohol and body odor. Devin's clothes were unkempt, and he wiped a trickle of blood from his nose with his sleeve. Aura had gotten at least one good hit in before he'd secured his hold.

Jana caught Elizabeth's eye and nodded almost imperceptibly forward.

"Stupid woman," Devin hissed. "What makes you think you can leave me?" He pulled the knife up and hacked into the handful of hair in his grasp. "See what other man would want you now. You were always too proud of this hair." He laughed as he hacked off another lengthy chunk. "You'll look like a boy now and an ugly one at that."

Elizabeth motioned for Jocasta to stay and she and Jana eased forward while Devin was preoccupied with slicing off Aura's long locks.

Aura stopped trying to wrestle free of his hold and stood perfectly still. "Cut it then." Her tears stopped flowing, and her eyes glinted with determination. "Cut it so short no man can ever hold me with it again."

Devin just grunted in response, not seeming to understand Aura's show of defiance.

As they maneuvered closer, thousands of fireflies swarmed closer to illuminate the space around them. Devin's neck snapped up, and his eyes stretched wide as his head swung from side to side, seeming incredulous at the sight.

His eyes circled forward again and narrowed when he spotted them closing in. He scowled and moved the tip of the blade back to Aura's stomach. "One more step and I'll kill her," he warned.

Elizabeth's career had required her to become skilled in making rapid assessments of the opposition, but it didn't take an expert to size this man up. Devin was a bully, and if there was one thing she knew about bullies, it was how easily they could crumble when challenged.

"Elizabeth, can you hear me?"

John's voice was strained with tension, but she didn't dare move her hands to respond. A faint trembling rolled through her muscles, and she tightened her grip as she raised her handgun. While her accuracy and precision had vastly improved due to the time John forced her to spend in the range, this was a shot she didn't plan to take. If she was right about Devin, there was another way.

~v~v~v~

John skidded to a hard stop as he topped a rocky hill. The field below glowed brightly with a strength no flashlight or lantern could have managed. His heart seized, and the world around him telescoped down to the image of Elizabeth in the distance. She stood in firing stance with her Beretta aimed at a man holding a pregnant woman at knifepoint.

 _Son of a bitch._ His boots pounded down the rocky hill as he sprinted towards the field. Specks of light flocked to his side, and he swatted at them with his free hand. As more filled the air around him, he saw they weren't like the bugs that pestered him on the planet with the Ancient satellite; they were more like fireflies and, while they came close, they didn't swarm his face or try to crowd him.

Thousands of those fireflies filled the air casting a strong light over the area where Elizabeth stood. At her side was a hooded figure holding a tall spear and a child cowered back behind them.

"That's Aura, and that's her worthless excuse for a partner Devin." Declan panted as he struggled to keep pace with John. He shifted his battle hammer up higher as if readying to strike. "I'll kill him if he harms her."

John was ready to kill him just for putting Elizabeth in this position. How had she ended up out here anyway? And who the hell was she with?

The wind suddenly swept the hood from the figure, unveiling Jana's face. John exchanged a quick look with Declan finding the man looking just as stupefied as John felt.

He tapped his earbud as Devin shouted something he couldn't quite make out. "Elizabeth…" His words stalled as she jerked the gun up to the sky and fired.

Adrenaline and fear rocketed through his body, but her tactic worked. The beefy man turned loose his hostage and rapidly backed up. Devin wasn't fast enough. As soon as Aura had scrambled clear, Jana stepped forward and swept her spear behind him, striking the back of his knees and knocking him backward onto his ass.

Elizabeth lowered her sidearm, aiming the barrel towards Devin while Aura raced off to grab the child. Jana directed the tip of her spear down, leaving it inches from Devin's chest as the man held his hands carefully off to his sides as if expressing defeat.

John glanced at Declan again, but he was no longer at his side. He craned his neck back and spotted him standing still and looking numbly at the scene before him. John didn't blame him. His wife had been keeping one hell of a secret from him.

Thompson ran along his other side. "Got any zip ties?" John asked.

"Yes, sir."

"Then you know what to do." The women seemed in full control of the situation, but it would eliminate some of the hassles of dealing with that asshole. "Get him secure while I check on the others."

He slowed to a trot as he reached Elizabeth's side. Her jaw was set and her face flushed; she was seriously pissed at this guy. He took position at her side keeping his P90 aimed towards Devin. Her eyes never veered away from Devin, but John knew she was aware of him at her side. After a moment, she slowly lowered her handgun and ejected the magazine.

"He was abusive." Elizabeth watched Thompson zip tie Devin's wrists. "It's a wonder they made it this long without him actually killing her."

She may have looked pissed, but her tone had been quiet and calm. Her voice hadn't wavered, and she was standing tall with her shoulders back. She disliked using guns, and it might hit her after the adrenaline wore off, but for now, she was hanging tough. He watched her inspect the Berretta making sure there wasn't a round chambered before stowing it along with the magazine back in her jacket.

She turned her eyes up to him as if feeling the weight of his stare. "What is it?" she asked.

His lips pressed together as he bit back his words. John could hardly answer truthfully with Thompson watching their every move. It grated his nerves that for the second time that day, he was forced to fight the fierce instinct to take her in his arms. Her expression softened, and as their eyes locked, he felt the pull of that shared need emanating between them.

Thompson squatted down to check the restraints again and, while his back was turned, Elizabeth reached up and threaded her fingers through John's hair, stroking her thumb against his cheek. Her touch lasted only seconds, but their gaze lingered on.

 _Damn it._ He was already suppressing his urge to throw her over his shoulder and drag her as far from this planet as possible, but if she kept looking at him like that, Thompson be damned. At the very least he should be able to touch her, hold her without stirring up a hornet's nest of drama.

He had that unsettling sensation of being backed into a corner accompanied by the urge to fight his way out. They really needed to get around to having that talk, because he was having a hell of a time remembering why their relationship was supposed to remain a secret.

"You scared the piss out of him, Dr. Weir. Maybe the crap too, he seriously stinks." Thompson said.

The corners of Elizabeth's lips quirked as she turned to look down at Devin.

As much as he was struggling with the secrecy of their relationship, there were many times he oddly felt like they were already parents. "Thompson, did you have to go there? There are-"

"Ladies present?" Elizabeth shot him a pointed look. "I think we can handle it. I think we did handle it, actually, and Devin deserved far worse."

His eyes zeroed in on the huge wet streak on Devin's pants, and John felt a broad smirk cross his face. Elizabeth may not have physically injured the man, but she'd dealt him a worse fate, a brutal blow to his dignity.

"Stupid women," Devin sputtered. "You three think you're all high and mighty now, but you just wait. I'll find you alone and-"

"Whoops," Thompson said as the butt of his P90 struck Devin's head, knocking him out and sending him falling limply back against the ground. "It slipped."

Elizabeth arched a brow, but seemed strangely satisfied. "Have any duct tape?" she asked. "He'll wake up eventually, and I've heard enough from him tonight."

Thompson plastered tape over Devin's mouth, and Jana retracted her spear just as Declan reached her side. Jana pulled up her chin as if prepping for a verbal ambush, but Declan didn't speak. He dropped his hammer and swept his arms around her, pulling her into a fierce hug.

Elizabeth's eyes flashed back to John, gleaming with a sad intensity. The one time she'd hugged him in public, he'd been too shocked to appreciate her arms around him, and now there was nothing he wanted more. He edged closer until their shoulders brushed. It wasn't the contact he wanted, but it was slightly better than nothing. She leaned against him as they turned their attention back to the couple hugging before them.

"I'm sorry," Declan said when he finally released Jana.

Jana's head snapped back. "What do you have to be sorry for?"

"For whatever I did to make you think you had to conceal this from me."

John was impressed. He doubted he would have collected himself so quickly. He wasn't the only one who was caught by surprise. Jana's mouth opened softly, and it took her a moment to respond.

"I thought you would be angry." Her voice was quiet, but not timid.

"Angry that you are the demon?" A broad grin spread over Declan's face, and he beamed at her. "I've never been more proud."

"You're the demon?" Jocasta gasped as she wiggled against her mother's tight hold.

Aura was holding up well, and the fact that she wasn't more upset was telling. Living with an abuser may have made her feel helpless, but it had also made her strong, stronger than she probably even knew yet.

Devin would never have stood a chance against those three women, John thought, feeling another wave of pride at their show of strength. He wasn't one who made a habit of underestimating women's abilities, but today he kind of had. His protective instincts had a way of taking over whenever Elizabeth was involved and skewing his perception.

"I'm no demon, child." Jana smiled warmly towards Jocasta. "Perhaps Elizabeth is right, and I should reveal my identity."

"Either that or create a cool superhero nickname." John lowered his P90 as Thompson assumed guard duty. "Maybe the Huntress or Elecktra, they both had long dark hair, too."

Elizabeth elbowed him. "John," she sighed and shook her head, but John spotted the smile ghosting at her lips.

"What is a super hero?" Jana asked, her voice cracking as she started coughing.

"You just have to ignore Sheppard when he starts talking nonsense," Declan said, shooting John a shit-eating grin. "He does it frequently."

"It's not nonsense; it's just…never mind." John didn't have the time for an Earth pop culture crash course, so he let it go. "Go ahead and laugh, but you're the one who didn't realize your partner was the demon of the darkness."

"You're right. I never dreamed…I mean, I've never seen her hold anything besides a cooking knife before tonight." Declan's smile faded as he wiped his hand over his bald scalp. "How about you? Have you ever seen Elizabeth use that kind of weapon?"

"Oh, that. Yeah. She's fired one of these at me before." John held up his P90 and ignored Elizabeth's responding glare.

"At you?" Declan's brows drew together. "She's fired on _you_ before?"

"It's a… long story. It involves stasis pods and mind control-"

"See what I mean about the nonsense?" Declan grinned towards Jana, before looking back to John. "Funny how the man giving me a hard time for not knowing about Jana just admitted to having his own woman fire a weapon at him."

Elizabeth's eyes went wide, and she nodded back towards Thompson. John just shrugged. He didn't care anymore and, now that she was out of harm's way, his fear was subsiding, and irritation was flaring to take its place. He wasn't just cranky because he couldn't hug her the way Declan had Jana. Elizabeth had been in danger twice that day, something unacceptable under his watch, and he still couldn't believe she'd ditched Thompson to join Jana like this.

"I'll tell you about it some other time," John finally answered realizing now probably wasn't the best time to have mentioned the whole hostile entities taking control of their bodies thing. "Right now, these women have some explaining to do, and they can start with where the hell they were going in the middle of the night."

Elizabeth raised her brows towards him and cocked her head to the side in silent warning.

John rolled his eyes. "What?" He more growled than spoke. "I'm allowed to be a little cranky about it don't you think? Given what we went through earlier this day."

She didn't speak; she just kept staring him down. That wasn't good. It had been a while since she'd spoken, too. That probably wasn't good either.

"Fine." He turned his eyes towards Jana. "Let's start with other things we don't know. All the women that have gone missing over the years, that was you?"

"Yes," Jana said.

"Were all the partners abusive?"

"Yes."

John rubbed a hand down the back of his neck. This was going to be a fun conversation if he couldn't get more than one word out of her at a time.

"I should have made the connection before," Declan frowned. "I didn't particularly like any of those women's partners. "

"What about the men?" John asked. "The two who were killed."

Jana flinched. "It was before we moved to this planet," she said. "It was more dangerous then to get the women to safety. Both managed to catch up to us, and they reacted much like Devin, they were furious when they discovered their partners were leaving them."

"So you killed them for discovering your secret?" John instantly wished he could retract his words. He hadn't known Jana long, but even he could tell she wasn't the kind of person who would have done that. "They gave you no choice, did they?"

Jana's eyes narrowed. "Lavana killed the first. He approached undetected, snatched his child, and beat him with a club for leaving with his mother. When I managed to get between them, he struck again, rendering me unconscious. He only grew more violent after that, so you are correct. He gave her no choice. And I killed the man who sliced Lavana's leg. His knife was inches from her heart when I speared him."

Declan rubbed his chin, eyeing Jana incredulously. "Your sister is involved with this?"

Maybe it was the shock, but Declan seemed more surprised her sister was involved than to discover Jana had killed someone and had almost been killed herself.

"She was the first that I helped." Jana's voice was soft. "It was soon after I was saved from such circumstances and learned to defend myself."

John cursed under his breath. He knew what he'd do if he heard the same about Elizabeth and he knew Declan would react no differently. The shit would hit the fan or, more likely, random body parts would hit the fan as soon as Declan caught up with that man.

Declan sucked in a harsh breath, and he bent down and picked up his hammer. "Who hurt you?"

"Hold on, big guy." John held up his hand as stepped in front of Declan, forcing his attention away from Jana. "Don't go all Bruce Banner on me now."

"What the hell are you going on about?" Declan's knuckles were white from gripping his hammer so tightly.

"It's a man that gets blinded by rage and turns into the Incredible Hulk." He'd admit to talking nonsense now, but he was just hoping to distract Declan long enough to get him through the initial burst of anger.

"Incredible Hulk?" Jana asked.

"Big, green, muscled guy that gets real nasty with everyone around him. He-"

"Declan." Elizabeth interrupted and gently tugged John out from between Jana and Declan. "John's point is there is a time and place to sort that out. Now we should focus on getting Aura to safety. She's exhausted."

Declan's face scrunched up and his teeth mashed together as he stared angrily into the distance.

Jana reached out and squeezed his arm. "Listen to her. We must act in the present and assist Aura, not dwell on the past."

Declan's shoulders sagged, and he managed a small tight smile for Jana. "I'll leave it be, _for now_ , but there is no need to take her elsewhere. She can return to her home. We'll look after her."

"And what about Devin?" Elizabeth asked.

"He's about to get a new mailing address." John sighed as he registered both Jana's and Declan's puzzled expressions. "We'll toss him through the Stargate," he revised. "I know a great place. Dark, scary. He'll fit in perfectly."

"And if he returns?" Jana asked.

"Then we'll deal with him." Declan's free hand stroked over the top of his hammer, leaving little doubt of how he'd handle it.

"Aura?" Jana shifted sideways. "What would you prefer?"

Aura looked to Jocasta before turning her eyes back up. "I don't want to return, not yet. I don't wish to see everyone looking at me in pity. I want to start again."

"And we're right back where we started," John said. "Where exactly were you headed?"

"It will be easier to show you," Jana said as a coughing fit overcame her.

"Are you even supposed to be out of bed?" Declan lowered his hammer and moved his free hand to Jana's back. "Does their medicine work that quickly?"

"No," Elizabeth said firmly. "It doesn't. That's another reason we should get moving."

"Thompson, stay here with Devin." John stepped over and nudged Devin with his boot. "Hopefully he'll stay passed out for a while, but if not-"

"I know how to handle him, sir."

"Yeah. I guess you do." John cocked his head towards Elizabeth. "How are you feeling? You sure you're up for some more walking?"

Her eyes darted from Aura to Jana, and it dawned on him that was probably callous question given their current company.

"Yes, I want to see this place. Are you sure _you_ want to come?" She dropped her voice. "You might have a right to feel slightly irritable with me, but I don't want your anger getting misdirected. That's not the first impression I'd like to make."

"Then neither of us are going anywhere." His tone was harsher than he intended, but comments like that certainly weren't going to improve his attitude, that was for damn sure.

He drew in a deep breath and gut checked himself. He wasn't thrilled she'd ditched Thompson, but deep down, he was mostly pissed at himself for not being there to prevent this in the first place.

Thompson shifted uncomfortably before turning his back to them and staring down at Devin's unconscious form. _Great._ That's all he needed. Now Elizabeth would be pissed at him for drawing attention to their brewing argument.

She pinched the bridge of her nose and took a deep breath before turning to face him. Instead of the anger he'd expected, he found only warmth radiating from her eyes. She stepped closer than she probably should of, not pausing until just a breath stood between them. "When I found out what Jana was doing and why, I didn't feel I had a choice. I couldn't let them go alone considering the conditions they were in." Her voice was so low it was almost inaudible. "But… I am sorry for taking off without Thompson."

His eyes fell to his boots, and he felt his anger start to deflate. "Well. I'm not sorry for being an ass about it." He felt a smile tugging at his lips when his eyes turned back up.

"I'd only worry if you _weren't_ upset," she smiled wryly before turning to follow Jana and Declan.

She was a few yards ahead before he registered that he was staring stupidly after her. It was hardly the first time it had happened that day, and it probably wouldn't be the last. He trotted to catch up, lamenting once again the lack of jeweler in the Pegasus Galaxy. Hell, he'd take a ring from a gumball machine at this point.

The fireflies' numbers had dwindled, leaving them just enough light to see. They were busy shaping into a long glowing band carving a path forward through the darkness.

"Did you see the bioluminescent flowers in the woods before you reached this field?" Elizabeth asked.

"What?" He reached out to feel her forehead. "Are you getting sick too?"

Elizabeth swatted his hand away as Jana laughed and glanced back. "She is not ill, and her eyes were not deceiving her. The forest didn't alight for you as it did for us. You are unknown here."

"Those bugs were all over us when we came down the hill," John pointed out, though he guessed they'd probably been too busy to notice.

"It was because I sent them," a soft melodious voice drifted through the dark.

"Sera?" Jana squinted into the darkness. "You are not supposed to-"

"It was just a little light, my dear, illuminating the vicinity I happened to be in. No rule was broken," Sera said as a cloud of fireflies drifted over her body making her visible for the first time.

Sera was tall and slender with long braided hair that was more silver than black. She wore one of those long and loose cotton dresses most women in the galaxy seemed to favor, though hers was wildly patterned with a rainbow of colors. Beyond that, there was nothing particularly unusual about her, so he couldn't figure out the look of awe on Elizabeth's face.

"You're an Ancient," Elizabeth breathed.

"I am many things, but that is the one I am least proud of, Dr. Weir."

 _Shit._ Elizabeth must have forgotten that meeting Ancients had never particularly worked out well for them in the past.

"I don't suppose I have to ask how you know my name," Elizabeth said.

"I know many things, and I realize you have many questions. I also know that Aura has been through an ordeal tonight. Let's get her to the village, and I will answer what questions I can." Sera drifted towards Aura and Jocasta. "Come my dears. Everyone is looking forward to meeting you and showing you the new home they have prepared."

She took Aura's arm just as she stumbled. "Let's get you off your feet," Sera said as another cloud of fireflies illuminated a pocket of darkness revealing a horse pulling a small cart. "Aura, I do believe the short hair suits you."

Aura reached up and combed her fingers through her short choppy locks. "It may not be short enough."

"You will find other women of like mind in our village. They'll help you shear it all if you prefer, though it would take some work to keep it as smooth as this." She reached out and rubbed her hand playfully over Declan's scalp. "It is wonderful to meet you, Declan. You are a good man and have been a caring partner to Jana."

"Well, I didn't know you existed, but it's…uh… good to meet you too." Declan's look turned quizzical. "This knowing things trick of yours, you don't happen to know who's been making off with the small barrels of ale in our cellars, do you?"

"Or the locations of any ZPM's?" John asked, plastering what he hoped was a charming smile on his face.

"ZPM's?" Jana shot them both a look of amused annoyance, though Declan seemed oblivious.

"There is one missing item I can assist with." Sera turned to the little girl. "Jocasta, my sweet. I believe Colonel Sheppard has something that belongs to you."

He'd almost forgotten. Jocasta peered shyly up at him as he pulled her doll out from one of his deep pants pockets.

"Damiya!" Jocasta cried. She darted forward and snatched the doll from his hands.

John's eyes slanted towards Elizabeth. "Is that another word for monster or did she just cuss me? It sounded like she said damn-"

"It's her dolls name." Elizabeth quickly cut him off.

"Oh." He rubbed his chin, still somewhat skeptical.

"Thank you." Jocasta threw her arms around his leg and squeezed.

Okay, so maybe she hadn't been cussing him. "You're welcome." He smiled down at her as Elizabeth reached out and ruffled her hair.

"Come along, little one," Jana said, tugging Jocasta away and motioning her and Aura towards the cart.

They quickly got them settled inside. There was plenty of room for Aura and Jocasta, and there would have been enough room for Jana too, but she adamantly refused.

Elizabeth looked thoughtfully at Sera. "Do you spend all your time on this planet? In corporeal form?"

"I prefer it here with my people and with the gardens I have cultivated. I always thought Ascension would be a gift, but things are not always as they seem, are they, Dr. Weir?" Sera paused beside her horse, a knowing look crossing her face as her eyes moved between John and Elizabeth.

Even in the dim light, he spotted a faint blush in Elizabeth's cheeks. "You obviously know me too well to continue using my formal name."

"Very well. Elizabeth it is," Sera said.

A coughing fit wracked Jana's body. It was severe enough to make his own ribs hurt, and he fished out the cough drops he'd spotted when checking his gear earlier.

He handed Jana the wrapped drops. "Let one of these dissolve in your mouth; it'll help with the cough." Some of Sera's words rushed back at him. "Wait a minute… did you say niece?" John asked.

"I'm a descendant," Jana's voice was gravelly. "Sera had been watching over my sister and me our wholes lives, though I never knew she existed until she saw we were in trouble and sent help. Our partners were brothers, and they were not good men."

"I didn't think she could intervene," John said.

"Not in most things, Colonel Sheppard," Sera said, "and most importantly not in things that would impact the outcome of war or advance civilizations, but the others did not prevent me from sending someone from my village to assist a descendant. They are concerned with…other things."

Sera mounted and guided the horse into motion. Jana and Declan followed behind the cart, leaving him and Elizabeth trailing behind.

They'd only walked a few minutes when he spotted a glistening pool of blue-white light. As they closed in, he saw it was a lake of some sort, full of glowing organisms and sea creatures. He'd once night surfed in San Diego, riding an almost neon blue wave dense with bioluminescent phytoplankton. He'd never seen anything like it before and never expected to see anything like it again, but this… _this_ was pretty damn cool.

"It looks like we're heading straight for the lake," he turned to Elizabeth, wondering if they'd made it this far before.

"We are."

He stopped walking and stared at Elizabeth. "What am I missing here?"

She cupped his chin, drawing his gaze forward just as the horse trotted forward onto the lake.

"What the hell?" He watched as millions of specks of the flowing blue-white light flocked together forming a path across the lake.

He heard Declan muttering up ahead before the huge man took a timid step onto the lake. He grinned at Jana and took another step. He paused for a moment and started jumping up and down.

"It's springy." Declan laughed before moving quickly to catch up with Jana who had shaken her head at his antics and moved on without him.

Elizabeth took John's hand, drawing him forward. Instead of releasing her hold when they resumed walking, she laced her fingers through his and gripped tightly. They'd moved beyond Thompson's line of sight, but the move still caught him by surprise.

As the shore ended, he stepped gingerly onto the glowing path. It gave slightly under his weight, but as Declan said, it was springy, reminding him of a suspension bridge over a lake he'd frequented back on Earth. He turned his head from side to side, taking in the incredible array of bioluminescent sea creatures bobbing outside the path in the murky darkness of the water.

The rest of their group was nearing land when he pulled Elizabeth to a stop. They were only mid-way across, but it just occurred to him that he'd yet to truly take advantage of Thompson being out of eyeshot.

"What are you doing?" Elizabeth asked as his arms wound around her.

"What do you think I'm doing? I haven't kissed you in hours, and we're on some magical bridge in the middle of scenery that could have come from a Disney movie."

"The others are waiting." It was an unconvincing protest, especially after she leaned in, angling her mouth towards him.

"They can deal with waiting; I'm still going to kiss you." Their lips melded together in a voracious kiss that only served to fuel his hunger instead of satiate it. When she started to pull away, he cupped the back of her head, holding her close and deepening their kiss. "Sorry," he rasped when their lips finally parted. "Couldn't pass up that opportunity."

"I'm just sorry we had to wait for that kiss." Her voice was almost a whisper. "I never thought it would be easy to hide this, but it's getting harder, isn't it?"

"You've no damn idea. Well, actually, I guess you do."

"Sheppard, come on!" Declan bellowed from across the lake. "You'll have plenty of time to kiss her later."

Elizabeth let out a shuddery groan and buried her head against his neck. Her breath fell hot against his skin, doing little to quell the need coursing through his body.

"What are the odds Thompson didn't hear that?" Her voice was muffled.

He stroked his fingers over her hair before gently grasping her head and guiding her lips back to his. "Well, he'll just have to deal with it, too," he muttered before their mouths fused again into a brief, but fiery kiss.

"Sheppard! We're heading on without you."

It was his turn to groan when Elizabeth pulled away. "Tonight isn't about us," she reminded.

"It's not going to take all night to get Aura settled in," he pointed out as he took her hand. His eyes roamed hungrily over her as they started walking. "And just so you know, I'm already planning another pit stop here on the way back."

~v~v~v~

It was hours later when they made it back to their cabin in the Scalino mountain village. Elizabeth was already in bed, her body tangled in the covers. She had changed back into her strappy tank top and one of her long bare legs extended out from beneath the blanket.

John was still going through the motions of stripping off all his gear. He liked being in the military, most days anyway, but nights like this he longed for the convenience of civilian attire. His boots alone seemed to take agonizing minutes to unlace and toe off his feet.

"So that village was interesting," he said as he finished shedding his shirt and BDU's. "Why do you think so many of them don't seem interested in Ascension?"

"Sera makes no secret that she is not proud of being Ascended. Her people see her struggle to abide by their rules, to sit by and not act when horrible things are happening in the universe. They see that, and I think it makes them appreciate their lives as they are. Enough of them do choose to ascend that keeps the population in check."

Her voice was sleepy. She was exhausted. They were both exhausted. It was well after midnight, and they'd been moving nonstop all day.

"Do you think something happened?" he asked. "That's she's being punished somehow?" He set his sidearm in easy reach and placed his earbud beside it before moving towards the bed.

"I think this is her choice. The other Ancients probably permit it as long as she doesn't extend her protection over a larger territory. They have bigger concerns than her."

As long as Sera didn't help them, he thought as he expelled a deep breath. They could sort through the aftermath tomorrow, as for now, he was long past ready to put work aside for the day.

He climbed under the covers and settled in tight behind her. Elizabeth shifted and turned towards him within the circle of his arms. She tucked her head against his neck and hooked her heel around the back of his thigh, the closeness drudging up a sigh of contentment deep inside his throat.

God, he'd wanted this since the second he'd first spotted her stepping outside of Declan's home earlier that afternoon. He'd needed this, needed to feel her heartbeat strumming against his chest and feel the warmth of her breath dusting against his skin.

He tightened his grip, soaking up the feeling of her body so tightly intertwined with his own. There were days this galaxy that took more than he had to give, days that left him tired, frustrated and without hope. But when they reached for each other at night-

"That's better," she breathed, uncannily finishing his thought.

Her lips brushed against his neck, drawing an appreciative rumble from him in response. This wasn't just better; it was pretty damn good. Better than he probably deserved.

They laid that way for minutes, indulging in the closeness. Just when he thought she'd fallen asleep, he felt her arm start stroking down his back again.

"John? Are you awake?"

"You think I can fall asleep with you wrapped around me like this?"

"You fall asleep tangled up with me every night."

He gave a little huff of laughter. "Fair enough. What's on your mind? You okay?"

"I'm just…sorry about earlier. Rambling on about Turkey."

It felt like that conversation had taken place days ago, not hours. "You barely said anything. And don't apologize. I asked." Maybe he shouldn't have pushed her to talk, but either way, that memory would be weighing heavy on her mind tonight. "I feel that way too, you know. Guilty for surviving." The words escaped without thought, and John wasn't sure who he surprised more, Elizabeth or himself by speaking up.

"Afghanistan?" she asked.

"Among other things."

"It's something I'll always carry with me," she said. "It's probably not healthy, I know, but I just try to channel that guilt, make my life worth something and deserve it these extra chances I've been given over the years."

He'd had more extra chances than he could track and he wasn't sure how many more he'd get. Today had given him a taste of the torment Elizabeth experienced each time he went MIA or threw himself into the eye of some shitstorm.

There was nothing he could do to spare her that worry, and he couldn't imagine their situation with the Wraith improving anytime soon. Atlantis had already lost one military commander. John had been lucky for years, but there were no guarantees his luck would hold out forever.

"Elizabeth, if anything ever happens to me-"

She sucked in a harsh breath and edged back. The look in her eyes gutted him. "John, don't."

Maybe it was kind of shitty to push this conversation after the day they'd had, but then again, maybe that made it the perfect time. It would never be easy to say, but it was something he needed her to hear.

"Just… promise me you'll remember your own words if something happens."

"No," she said quietly. "Not just me. We promise each other."

If something ever happened to her… hell _._ Just the thought alone was like a sucker punch to his heart. He'd lose the best part of himself, that would be something he could never completely recover from.

He quickly purged those thoughts from his mind. Nothing would ever happen to her. That was not an option.

"That's easy enough," he finally said. "Did I mention I'm never letting you off-world again?" He forced a smile, hoping to draw them both away dark thoughts. As they stared at each other, her face slowly relaxed into a grin and her shoulders started shaking softly. "And now you're laughing at me. Again."

"I can't help it," Elizabeth said. "It's cute when you think you can control me."

"All right. No more laughing and calling me cute. You're way past your limit today."

"Technically, that was yesterday. I get to start all over today," she said with an impish grin.

A rush of air hissed through his teeth. "Seriously, I jumped out the back of a perfectly good spaceship and risked falling down the side of a steep mountain to save you."

Her laughter stalled as she stared up at him. "You're not joking. You really jumped."

"I should probably mention that I did have a rope." Her frown deepened, and he cursed himself for being so careless when he'd just gotten her smiling again. "That was supposed to impress you. And it was hardly the most danger I've been in today." Her body stilled, and he quickly registered that his words hadn't exactly been helpful. _Damn it._ "Breathe, Elizabeth. You're starting to scare me."

She eventually let out a slow breath and tucked her head back against his neck. Her silence was unnerving, but he didn't want to push her. Instead, he pressed a kiss against her hair and let his head fall back on the mattress.

As he held her, her hand came up, her fingers threading through his hair. Her fingers combed over and over through his already messy spikes. It was a nervous habit of hers, something she usually only did after he'd survived something he probably shouldn't have. He'd seen the results of her handiwork before. While his hair was hardly tame to begin with, it'd like he'd stuck his finger in a light socket when she was through.

He eased back to see her face, finding a tormented look in her eyes that shredded his heart.

"The tsunami. Where were you when it hit?" Her voice was faint.

He swallowed hard. He couldn't look her in the eye and tell her, not when they were already glistening with moisture.

"You were right, I should have spoken up sooner," Elizabeth said. "If something would have happened to you-"

"I'm okay. You're okay. That's all that matters now."

"This isn't okay, John. I mean, I'm old enough to realize love isn't just a walk among the roses, but the risks you take each day… I just can't compartmentalize it anymore. I'm not sure I ever really did, but now, now I just feel sick." Her hand moved to his face, her fingers skirting around the scrapes and scratches that marred his face. "I never imagined it was possible to worry like this."

His mouth opened as he stared down at her, but he just couldn't seem to muster a single word that sounded right in his head.

"What?" She looked suddenly uncomfortable.

"You said love." The words came without thought or intent, and he instantly regretted the carelessness of his tone.

"I did say love," she said softly.

The following silence was painful, to him anyway. Elizabeth now seemed surprisingly serene as if relieved it was finally out there. Her hand dropped to his shoulder, and her fingers skimmed down his arm and over his body as she gave him time to digest and regroup.

He realized he was holding his breath. It seemed like his brain had forgotten how to handle the simplest of automated functions. _Blink, breath,_ he thought. _Speak_.

He wasn't sure why it was such a shock to hear those words aloud. He'd known she loved him. He hoped she knew that he loved her. He wanted to marry her for god's sake and, while Pegasus was a shitty place to start a family, he wanted that too. He wanted it all with a ferocity that stole his breath, so why the hell couldn't he manage the words?

"Totality," he said, the word coming in a fast rush.

She turned her head up to him, blinking in confusion. "Are you talking about the eclipse?" Her eyes pressed shut, but not before he'd seen the flicker of hurt.

"Yes. No. It just made me think…" He sucked in a deep drag of air and started again. "Totality," he said again. "It means the whole of something."

Her eyes seemed a deeper shade of green when she flicked them back open. They searched his, questioning and looking for something more than he'd managed to offer.

"You gave me that." His words escaped in choppy bursts. "With you, I feel….part of something."

"You are part of something," she said. "This expedition-"

"Something more than that," he said, his words starting to become more fluid. " _We're_ something more than this expedition." He relaxed as her eyes softened in understanding.

They might have been thrown together because of circumstance, but that wasn't what had kept them together. And they might not have talked about, he might not really be capable of having the conversation she deserved yet, but as he looked into her eyes, he realized maybe he didn't have to. Maybe he'd already managed enough for now.

Her hand reached up to cup his chin. "So…totality?" When he nodded, she smiled and reached behind his neck, drawing him closer. "I love you, too," she whispered just before their lips collided.

~ _The end_

I hope you enjoyed. Thank you for reading and for leaving reviews!

See you out there.


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